Let's Build Gonave, Haiti!

Many areas of the world have emergency sirens and signs that alert the public to impending issues. These issues could be wildfires, tornado, hurricane, earthquake, etc. With the city of Anse-a-Galets, there is currently no such system. Being the largest village on the island and having the main hospital on the island, such a city in the region should have some sort of protocol that notifies the public of such issues. Not only from the stand point of having such a system is good for the public, but it is also important for the future of the island. Businesses want to know that an area has the infrastructure in place to keep the public and their interest safe. Establishing a Regional Emergency Management and Homeland Security group would be something that could impact the entire island. These systems are not only for notification outdoors, but also should notify people who are indoors. Radio alerts, TV alerts, and text notifications would all be something that a Regional Emergenc

The island of La Gonave doesn't have any outside presence that is on a large national scale. Many of the non-profits have a limited budget and are focused on programs that are not for the entire island population. While La Gonave lies many miles from the coast of the mainland, it doesn't have any organization that can bring focus to the island when a national disaster happens. Given that Hurricane Irma missed La Gonave (barely), is proof that in times of extreme weather, we need an organization like The Red Cross. It does exist on the mainland, and is well established. We need to get the organization onto the island and setup a small office presence there. Given the size of Anse-a-Galets, a small 5,400 sq. ft. space would be a great starting point. Having this presence will be a lifeline for the island residence when they get cut off from services from the mainland during a natural disaster. Go Gonave!

Getting to and from La Gonave is a bit of a challenge. Typically you can fly into the island from Port-au-Prince using a charter flight, or you would have to take a ferry. Due to really expensive fares, most locals use the various sailboats and a ferry that go to and from the island. These water vessels are barely sea worthy, and some have even sunk. Most of the people who fly to the island are foreigners who are with or part of the not-for-profit groups on the island. Rarely if ever do Haitians fly even from the the Port-au-Prince airport, let alone La Gonave. The island of La Gonave has a 2,400 foot dirt runway that easily gets muddy when it rains, and often has livestock that is roaming the airstrip. This simply can not continue to happen. The La Gonave airport is only a 20 - 25 min flight from Port-au-Prince airport. Given the short distance, and large population on the island an air service could be supported. If you look at the numbers of people who daily go to and fr

With La Gonave the issue of power is one of many reasons economic development doesn't happen. While there was once a solar producer in Haiti, that company doesn't appear to be in business any longer. One reason would be the cost of the panels that were sold. The panels were way over priced to the point where you can import panels that were superior in quality and power produced for cheaper. While some will say that buying from Haiti is important, we agree! The problem is that businesses have to make products where the price for the goods make sense. Otherwise they do a major disservice to the country. The lost jobs, prospects, industry, etc all affect the country due to companies over boosting the price of goods. Regardless La Gonave would need solar and wind to provide power. While the island would never be a power mega-house, it could become self-sustainable with energy. First the island residents would need to start off with basic solar panels of about 100W. Als

I wrote about how La Gonave would no longer be sold. During the time that the decree was signed vs when it was voted down, many potential and real investors have walked away from La Gonave. In that blog I wrote how they would have lost any investment they put on the island. We even halted projects just to see what would happen with the Haitian elections and the decree the island was under. Both of those issues are now solved! Thank Goodness! Now we have to work at the beginning to bring folks back to the table to consider developing the island for the sake of the people, and not some underhanded offshore deal. With that said, the small village of Megasin could be the focus city for development. Megasin is a village NW of the city of Anse-a-Galets and has a population of under 100 people. With a smaller population and close proximity to Anse-a-Galets, the landing strip and the wharf, Megasin is ripe for development. The development would be stretched over a period of time and