Haiti Earthquake Recovery
Natural calamities have adverse negative effects on the country’s economic, social and political arenas. Recovery is the country’s dream and, it is the responsibility of every citizen to achieve it. The Haiti earthquake is one such calamity. The aim of this paper is to discuss how the Haiti Government and other affected areas recovered after the earthquake. It will also evaluate the Government of affected areas recovery. Further, it will discuss how I would handle the recovery differently as the Emergency Manager.
Donations enabled the Government of Haiti and other affected areas to remove the remains of the fallen buildings. Part of the remains provided recycled material in the construction of new structures (Farmer & Mukherjee 2011). The task involved part of human labor thus creating temporary employment to a good number of Haitians. A count of more than 1,000 families was able to return to their homes. The relief tents hosted more than half a million people. However,diseases and animosity among the different Haitians were prevalent in these tents.
The poor conditions at the tents triggered the charitable organisations to realise the need to put up decent shelters, and probably settle the Haitians who still roamed the streets (Kapucu & Liou 2014). The American Red Cross put an end to the idea of constructing more accommodations that were subject to change in the near future. Rather, the need lay in building structures that would provide permanent homage. To repair the damaged homes proved more economical to the Haiti Government. Within a span of two years, more than 100,000 people have been settled.
As the study of Farmer et al. (2011) explains, the Oxfam organization stepped in to offer a solution to the issues related to infrastructure. Its main interest lay in rebuilding the cities in the interior and the areas found on the outside of Port-au-Prince. The organization went public about its contributions towards recovery by posting its intentions on their website. The new administration has been called upon by the non-profit to come to the aid of the Haitians who are still living miserably (Coulter 2011).
Kapucu et al. (2014) states clearly that though the reconstruction appeared too slow; the relief-offering organizations urged donors to honor their pledges to Haiti. Tom Adams, the Haiti special coordinator and based in the U.S., advised the Haitians to be active and make the recovery process their initiative. Farmer et al. (2011) advises that it is unwise for the Haitians to let the responsibility of recovery rest with the donors.
The governments of the affected areas failed in their recovery process. In the Kapucu et al.’s lamentations (2011) pointed out that charities misappropriated funds meant to help the Haitians. A good sum went into paying for the ever-rising rents and other needs of the board members. The supplies needed to save the situations of Haitians were highly priced. The imported personnel that was offering rescue services consumed a big percent of the donor funds. The government ignored the crucial needs of the Haitians and prioritized on worthless campaigns. It was pointless to spend money on a campaign to urge people to wash their hands when water and soap were more of a luxury than a necessity to the people (Coulter 2011).
As the Emergency Manager, I would urge the Haitians to shift from the thought of how the donors would be of help. Rather, they should do their best to be of help to themselves and look at foreign aid as a plus to their efforts. I would advocate campaigns to urge the able to embrace the affected families and offer them hope. I would make arrangements with various health facilities to extend their services to the injured at an affordable fee. In addition, I would advocate the donors to assist in terms of skilled labor instead of cash. While cash is likely to be misused by the government, human labor is more reliable and would oversee reconstruction of the country’s infrastructure (Coulter 2011).
References
Coulter, M.A. (2011). Aftershock: A journey of faith to Haiti. Bloomington: WestBow Press.
Farmer, P., & Mukherjee, J. (2011). Haiti after the Earthquake. USA: Perseus Books Group.
Kapucu, N., & Liou, T.K. (2014). Disaster and Development: Examining global issues and cases. New York, NY: Springer.