‘Apre dans tanbou a lou’---Amid some of Haiti’s chronic concerns, upcoming senatorial elections, unstable gas prices, and food insecurity, tens of thousands of Haitians still managed to put all their troubles aside and revel in 3 days of carnival festivities which culminated yesterday during Mardi Gras under an unusual downpour of rain.

The United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery makes grants available for up to $15,000 for programs of humanitarian, legal and financial assistance to individuals whose human rights have been violated as a result of contemporary forms of slavery.  Human trafficking and restaveks are just two areas where these funds could make a difference in Haiti.  No awards were given for Haitiian programs last year, but hopefully a number of organizations will apply this year.  Attached and below is background on this fund and the programs it supports.

Below is a reader blog by Daniel Schnitzer, the Director of InterIntel.  InterIntel is a small organization that specializes in innovative environmental management and alternative energy projects.  Presently, InterIntel is building a clean energy store in Les Anglais and establishing both an educational management course and a Jatropha project in Coteaux.  You can support InterIntel by donating, volunteering, or spreading the word about their work.

Below is a press release by the World Bank welcoming the Swiss decision to return six million dollars in assets stolen from the Haitian people by Jean Claude Duvalier.  Duvalier still has thirty days to appeal although it is unlikely he would succeed.  These funds would be used for humanitarian projects in Haiti.  While the sum is not large, it shows that Haiti, and the international system of which it is a part, are willing to go after dictators (and ex-dicators) who enrich themselves by impoverishing their own countries.

The Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group (AIDG) has released a "Call for Applications" for its first business plan competition in Haiti, Konkou Biznis Ayiti. The contest's theme is the commercialization of biogas in Northern Haiti.  The contest winner will receive up to $50,000 in financial support from AIDG, and training on both biogas sytems and enteprise management.  The contest deadline is March 6th, 2009.  Applicants must be Haitian citizens.  The offical press release is copied below.

Those who know Haiti understand its potential.  The Miami Herald recently described a report by Paul Collier, author of "The Bottom Billion", on why Haiti can indeed succeed over the long term.  Regional engagement, job creation, and empowerment of the Diaspora will be key.  Do you agree with his findings?  Please post your feedback in the comments section.   

In 2006, Haiti Innovation called for the Haitian Government to start subsidizing propane, if only on a pilot basis.  There has been no movement on the part of the Haitian government to do so, either in practice or in strategic planning documents like the Haiti Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper.  However, help may be on the way from its closest neighbor, the Dominican Republic.

On the outskirts of Les Cayes several years ago, I came across a school with a bio-latrine that used airless digestion to transform human waste into gas suitable for cooking, heating and lighting.  After one month, there was enough gas being produced to cook a meal for all of the students in this fairly large school, without using environmentally destructive wood charcoal. The gas is without odor and, beyond the initial investment, without cost.  The experiences of other low resource countries might hold lessons for the potential scale up of this innovation in Haiti. 

If you are (very) interested in Haiti, consider joining Corbett's List, easily the most active Haiti listserv.  The listserv carried an email today about Poto Mitan,  an impressive online repository of educational resources in Kreyol - everything from poetry to proverbs to  computer terminology.  It could be a good resource for Haitian educators or for people who want to learn Kreyol.  Links to several of the items featured on Poto Mitan are listed below.