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Haiti: TRANSPORTATION AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Overview: Public transportation, as it is understood in the United States, does not exist in Haiti. Most Haitians travel by private car, by bicycle, or on foot. There are about 36 vehicles per 1,000 inhabitants. The road system consists mainly of unmarked and unpaved roads. Local knowledge is necessary to traverse the country. Airports and ports serve the major urban areas.
Roads: Haiti’s road system is plagued by insufficient funding and a harsh climate. Seasonal torrential rains ravage the roads that are in place. The United States built much of the road network during the U.S. occupation (1915−34), and thus many stretches need extensive maintenance. Many of the country’s bridges are no longer passable. Because road construction has been largely haphazard, no accurate mapping exists of Haiti’s road network. At last count (1999), the country had 1,011 kilometers of paved roads and 3,149 kilometers of unpaved roads. Most paved roads surround and service Port-au-Prince, where about 85 percent of the country’s traffic is reported to be. Traffic congestion can be extreme in urban areas.
No formal licensing or training program exists for Haitian drivers. Speed limits are posted on some roads, but the police rarely have the manpower to enforce them. Most roads do not have marked lanes or signs indicating the direction of traffic. Old and poorly serviced vehicles lead to frequent traffic accidents and blockages.
Railroads: Haiti has only a small system of privately owned railroad tracks serving the port regions of the country.
Ports: Port-au-Prince serves as Haiti’s primary port for both cargo and passenger ships. The government currently owns and operates the port, but plans for privatization are under consideration. Tenders for privatization, however, have been pushed back repeatedly. The port at Port-au-Prince occupies nearly 15 hectares and has the service of a gantry crane capable of lifting containers up to 30 tons. Miragoâne and Cap-Haïtien are Haiti’s other main ports for exports. Smaller ports at Petit Goâve, Gonaïves, Jacmel, and Port-de-Paix are also active. The county’s smaller ports lack the modern machinery needed to handle heavy volume.
Inland Waterways: Haiti has fewer than 100 kilometers of navigable inland waterways. Most of the country’s rivers and streams tend to be short and swift flowing because of the mountainous terrain and narrow peninsulas. All the rivers rise and fall significantly with seasons. Civil Aviation and Airports: Port-au-Prince is home to Haiti’s only international airport. Despite poor facilities, the U.S. Department of Transportation examined improvements and declared the airport in fulfillment of international safety standards in 2000. Only two years before, the same body had condemned the airport as unsafe. The small airport at Jérémie serves the domestic travel needs of the southwestern portion of the country. In total, Haiti has four airports with paved runways and eight with unpaved runways. Because of poor facilities at airports, helicopter travel has become an important tool for international forces serving in Haiti.
Pipelines: Haiti has no pipelines.
Telecommunications: Haiti has the lowest telephone density in the Caribbean. Its average of 3.25 subscribers per 100 inhabitants is far below the Latin American/Caribbean average of 34 subscribers per 100 inhabitants. Until recently, the Haitian government completely controlled the telecommunications industry. Most rural people, and many even in urban areas, did not have access to a reliable phone line. Haiti had about 140,000 fixed phone lines in use in 2004. Télécommunications d’Haïti (the state company⎯Teleco) allowed two new service providers to enter the market in 1998. They made reliable telephone service available to those who could afford it, providing both fixed and mobile wireless phone service. Consequently, the number of cellular subscribers in Haiti increased dramatically⎯to 400,000 in 2004. Although still expensive for most Haitians, cellular phones have extended phone service into rural areas of the country previously outside the fixed network.
Internet access has come slowly to Haiti. Initially, Teleco refused to give Internet entrepreneurs access to phone lines. However, private companies worked to bring the Internet to the island. The country’s first Internet café opened in 1997. In 2003 a U.S. company entered the market to provide broadband Internet service. Later that year, a state plan emerged to subsidize Internet connections for schools. However, the plan was halted before any real progress occurred. As of 2005, Haiti had about 500,000 Internet users. The government does not impose restrictions on Internet access.
American Enterprise Institute,It is without question that Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere , plagued by disease and poverty and riddled with gang violence. ... US Missionary's Wife Pays $5,000 for Husband's Release in Haiti - 24 Oct 2006 Christian PostFAYETTEVILLE, NC – The wife of a US missionary kidnapped in Haiti paid $5,000 for her husband's release, his mother said. The Rev. ... Ron Daniels: US owes Haiti 'special debt' - 24 Oct 2006 Frost Illustrated,CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti (NNPA)-The year 2004 was supposed to be spectacular for Ron Daniels, founder of the Haiti Support Project. He ... Haiti represents more than chronic poverty - 24 Oct 2006 FinalCall.com,MILOT, Haiti - When Ron Daniels invited me to join his recent Haiti Support Project’s pilgrimage to the cities of Milot, Cap-Haitien and Port-au-Prince, I ... Locally Coordinated Anti-War Protests from Coast to Coast - 24 Oct 2006 Party for Socialism and LiberationUS Out of Iraq Now! Say NO to Colonial Occupation - Iraq, Palestine , Afghanistan, Haiti & Everywhere! Money for people's needs, not for war! ... over 4,000 Sewing Machines to Missionary Group - 24 Oct 2006 Business Wire (press release),...has partnered with Missionary Flights International (MFI), Fort Pierce, Fla., to deliver the machines to missionary families living in Haiti, the Dominican ... What Future for Haiti? An Interview with Patrick Elie - Oct 23, 2006 Upside Down World,In February 2004, US Marines whisked away then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from Haiti amid an armed rebellion led by disgruntled former soldiers and ... The time bomb in our backyard - Oct 23, 2006 New York Daily News,We recently visited Haiti as members of the ongoing US commission to "Help Enhance the Livelihood of People" and render advice on US foreign assistance. ... Speed the key to U-20s cup hopes - Oct 23, 2006 Royal Gazette,...left Toronto yesterday – after having discussions with United Soccer League (USL) officials – to join Bermuda’s delegation in Haiti and finalise ... Caricom offers Haiti help - Oct 20, 2006 Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation,Renewed clashes between armed gangs and UN peacekeepers in Haiti as a disarmament programme runs into trouble. Caricom says it stands ready to help in Haiti. ... Haiti Recalls Dessalines, Request Unity - Oct 22, 2006 Prensa Latina,Himler Rebu, leader of the Grand Gathering for Haiti's Evolution Party, supported the call, after considering it an "essential condition to favor the national ... Denouncement of UNSMH Violence in Haiti - Oct 20, 2006 Prensa Latina,Four people died and several were wounded in the capital neighborhood of Cite Soleil by soldiers from the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (UNSMH), denounced ... Internal And External Strife Has Plagued Haiti - Oct 20, 2006 Atlanta Daily World,In 1697, the countries struck a deal whereby France would control the western third of the island, now known as Haiti, and Spain would retain the eastern ... Children growing up without deported mom - Oct 21, 2006 Palm Beach Post,WEST PALM BEACH — They are ages 5 and 3. Twin boys and a dainty girl too young to know about the impoverished country of Haiti, too young to be told that ... Caribbean leaders: Haiti not ready to join regional trade bloc - Oct 18, 2006 International Herald Tribune,AP. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti A high-level Caribbean delegation promised to support Haiti as it returns to democratic rule but said Wednesday that the troubled and ... American missionary kidnapped in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 USA TodayPORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Kidnappers seized a US missionary as he left his church in northern Haiti and demanded a $5,000 ransom for his release, UN ... US missionary kidnapped in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 San Jose Mercury News,PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Kidnappers seized a US missionary as he left his church in northern Haiti and are demanding a ransom for his release, UN officials and ... American Missionary Kidnapped in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 Forbes,Kidnappers seized a US missionary as he left his church in northern Haiti and are demanding a ransom for his release, UN officials and relatives said Tuesday. ... Kidnappers free US missionary in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 International Herald Tribune,AP. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti A US missionary kidnapped as he left his church in northern Haiti was freed unharmed, his family said early Wednesday. The Rev. ... At least three said killed in clash in Haiti slum - Oct 19, 2006 Reuters.uk,PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (Reuters) - At least three people were killed in Haiti's largest and most dangerous slum on Thursday when a protest over the alleged ... Kidnappers free US missionary in Haiti - Oct 18, 2006 Boston Herald,By AP. A US missionary was kidnapped as he left his church in northern Haiti and later freed unharmed, his family said early today. The Rev. ... US missionary kidnapped in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 International Herald Tribune,AP. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti Kidnappers seized a US missionary as he left his church in northern Haiti and are demanding a ransom for his release, UN officials and ... US missionary kidnapped in Haiti - Oct 17, 2006 Monsters and Critics.com,PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (UPI) -- A US missionary has been kidnapped in northern Haiti, UN officials in the troubled Caribbean nation said Tuesday. The Rev. ... Witnesses say 2 civilians killed in Haiti clash with UN troops - Oct 19, 2006 International Herald Tribune,AP. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti A gunbattle broke out Thursday between UN troops and gunmen after peacekeepers bulldozed debris from a road in a volatile slum, and ... Kidnapped US Missionary Released in Haiti - Oct 18, 2006 Voice of AmericaBy VOA News. Parents of a US missionary kidnapped in Haiti say he has been released after two days in captivity. Pritchard Adams ... Statistics and damn lies - Oct 21, 2006 Trinidad & Tobago Express,Let me hasten to add that the UN numbers, spouted so easily by those who would have our country look like Haiti, do not define the true poverty line. ... Housekeeper who found $12,500 decides against clean getaway - Oct 22, 2006 Chicago Sun-Times,For Marie Toussaint, it was a no-brainer. ''The money didn't belong to me, and I wasn't supposed to take it,'' the 50-year-old Haiti native said. ... Douglas leads Caricom delegation to Haiti - Oct 18, 2006 Sun St.Kitts/Nevis,Chairman of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), Prime Minister, Dr. Denzil Douglas is leading a delegation of the Bureau of Heads of government to Haiti today. ... Ron Daniels: The US Owes Haiti a ‘Special Debt’ - Oct 17, 2006 The Wilmington Journal,...by George E. Curry. CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti (NNPA) – The year 2004 was supposed to be spectacular for Ron Daniels, founder of the Haiti Support Project. ... CARICOM Prime Ministerial Mission to Haiti will assess country’s ... - Oct 18, 2006 Communication's Unit Of The St. Kitts Prime Minister,Dr. Denzil L. Douglas said the Prime Ministerial Mission to Haiti on Wednesday is aimed at consolidating that country’s re-entry into the integration ... CARICOM mission will assess Haiti’s re-entry into integration ... - Oct 18, 2006 Caribbean Net News,...and Nevis Prime Minister and current Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr Denzil Douglas, said the Prime Ministerial Mission to Haiti on Wednesday ... Local Ministry Sending Cribs To Haiti - Oct 19, 2006 KKTV 11 News,...garage. But once they learned the cribs were for an orphanage in Haiti, Kohn says many who gawked, stopped to lend a hand. "Weather ... American missionary kidnapped while leaving his church in northern ... - Oct 18, 2006 abc13.com,...(10/18/06 - PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti) - Kidnappers seized a US missionary as he left his church in northern Haiti and demanded a $5,000 ransom for his release, UN ... Photojournalist, students, share thoughts on Haiti - Oct 18, 2006 Tallahassee Democrat,...for a dinner hosted by the club Tuesday night and to hear Miami Herald photographer Carl Juste speak about his experiences as a Haitian in Haiti in 2004, when ... U-20s have no fear of Jamaica or Haiti - Oct 20, 2006 Bermuda Sun,The young stars head to Haiti this weekend for the second phase of qualifying where they will take on the powerhouses of the Caribbean in a four-team group. ... CARICOM delegation visits Haiti to gather data that will enable it ... - Oct 16, 2006 Haiti Action Committee,Port-au-Prince - AHP — A CARICOM technical mission has been working in Haiti since Sunday in an effort to follow through on promises made by the regional ... Church minister is taken in Haiti - Oct 16, 2006 Fayetteville Online,By Andrew C. Martel. A missionary with ties to Fayetteville was kidnapped in Haiti on Sunday, according to his family. Pritchard ... This series of profiles of foreign nations is part of the Country Studies Program, formerly the Army Area Handbook Program. The profiles offer brief, summarized information on a country’s historical background, geography, society, economy, transportation and telecommunications, government and politics, and national security. In addition to being featured in the front matter of published Country Studies, they are now being prepared as stand-alone reference aides for all countries in the series, as well as for a number of additional countries of interest. The profiles offer reasonably current country information independent of the existence of a recently published Country Study and will be updated annually or more frequently as events warrant. |
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