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Digital Democracy
Empowering Civic Engagement Through Digital Technologies
Haiti Research 2010
Digital Democracy
Empowering Civic Engagement Through Digital Technologies
Country Snapshot
!
On January 12, 2010, Haiti experienced a devastating earthquakethat will change the country forever in ways that are still unclear.Before January 12, there were 9 million people in Haiti, 80 percent ofwhich lived below the poverty line and two-thirds were dependent onagriculture. GDP (purchasing power parity) was 11.53 billion in 2008,which is 1,300 dollars per capita. Living standards in Haiti have notimproved in the last 30 years, and have actually been getting muchworse: GDP per capita was 2,400 dollars in 1980.This dire economic situation has led to emigration in search of jobsand a dependence on money from the Haitian Diaspora. The twobillion dollar remittances market accounts for approximately thirtypercent of the country
ʼ
s GDP.
This is twice the amount of money thatHaiti earns from exports, and is more than official developmentassistance and foreign direct investment combined.
The amountcontinues to grow: in 2007, it was triple the level it was in 1998.Unfortunately, all available statistics in the country no longerrepresent reality, since no one knows exactly how the demographics,infrastructure, and landscape havebeen changed now that the countryhas lost over 200,000 of its people, aswell as most of its governmentbuildings and resources.Yet, Haiti has experienced naturaldisasters and man-made destructioncountless times throughout thecountry
ʼ
s short history, and somehowcontinue to not only survive but toinnovate and adapt. Political stabilityseemed to finally be a reality after thelast coup d
ʼ
etat in 2004, but thecountry was hit hard in the 2008hurricane season by four storms thatleft more than 800,000 peoplehomeless and devastated its agriculture.
Economic livelihoods of Young Haitians
Why We Went
In January 2010, Digital Democracypartnered with Tufts University
ʼ
sCenter for Emerging MarketEnterprises to conduct research inHaiti and a photography training. Theauthors of this report, researchersJoshua Haynes and Chrissy Martin,aimed to gain a better understandingof the financial lives of Haitians. Onprevious trips to Haiti, researcherKim Wilson had observed that lotterykiosks, known as borlettes, areubiquitous, reaching much furtherinto rural Haiti than any microfinanceorganization. We went to examinethe role that the pervasive lotteryculture might play in encouragingsavings and provide bankingservices, whether through usinglottery kiosks directly as distributionpoints, or creating prize-basedsavings products to incentivizesavings. Similar lottery-inspiredfinancial products have beensuccessful in the United States,England, and South Africa.This research was part of a “Savingsand Chance” study for theMasterCard Foundation. The youth-centered focus was inspired byMasterCard
ʼ
s commitment to workingwith youth and the knowledge thatfinancial habits start at a young age.Any innovative program to expandfinancial inclusion, especially oneintegrating technology, will first beadapted by younger generations.
Gros Monde, where we workedin Haiti
Digital Democracy
is a non-profit organization using digital technologies to empower civic engagement. Wework with local partners to develop tools that help community organizations promote human rights and build localcapacity. Emphasizing the need for new media literacy, we prepare youth & communities with the tools they needto be informed and engaged citizens in the 21
st
century.
Savings and Chance
Digital Democracy
What We Did
Project Einstein complemented the larger scoping study by using digital photography to understandhow one group of young adults, ages 18 to 24, view money and finance in their society.
The twelveyoung adults are part of a church in GrosMonde, a town in the mountains northof Port au Prince of northern Haiti.
We spent some time discussing famousphotographs, and the youth opened upas they talked about their reactions toeach photo, commenting on the use oflight and the emotions portrayed. Thenext day, the group discussed whatmoney means to them, and then splitinto four teams. Each team chose theirtheme:Team 1: What are the consequences ofmoney?
Team 2: Does money make you betterthan other people?Team 3: Can you live without money?
Team 4: What are the uses of money?
After the themes were chosen, the fourteams spent several hours taking pictures of their community in order to depict their theme. Later,they discussed each picture and its meaning with the researchers. We aired portions of the training onthe internet via livestreaming and mapping with our mobile phone.The town of Gros Monde was not directly affected by the natural disaster.
However, the digitalcameras and the laptop used were in a hotel which collapsed in Port au Prince, and the photos arenow among the countless items lost in the disaster. The pictures are lost, but their story is not.
Gros Monde is suffering and will continue to suffer indirectly from the earthquake, as the town iscurrently receiving thousands of refugees from Port au Prince. In the long-term, they will sufferbecause most youth moved to Port au Prince for work soon after graduation from high school, aneconomic outlet that is no longer available. The project gives some insight into the resilience of theseyouth and their community to work hard in seemingly hopeless situations and an attitude towardsmoney that we can only hope will continue to serve them well as they try to cope with the needs ofrebuilding Haiti.
Empowering Civic Engagement Through Digital Technologies
Project Einstein: Haiti Team
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