Sarah Harms Period 5 Picture a Haitian woman, named Johanne.

You see, Johanne makes her living in Haiti by hand-making and selling cookies that contain dirt, butter, and salt. She buys large bags of dirt, said to contain healthy minerals, for an overly expensive price of five dollars. She then mixes this dirt with a small amount of butter, salt, and sometimes sugar. Once the mixture is made, she spreads it over a tarp on the ground outside. The dirt cookies are sunbaked, and sold for five cents. Johanne hates to sell them, knowing that they are not a good source of nutrition, but its her only option. The dirt cookies provide close to zero nutritional value, but can fill a childs stomach. Johanne from Haiti is living in a country severely stricken by poverty. [5] Recently, Haitis major concern is that only a few years ago, it suffered from a major earthquake that took the whole country a few more steps back on top of the already poor conditions. The geography in Haiti is part of the reason it is so poor. The winds coming from the east are blocked by high mountains, which reduce rainfall for the Haitian part of the island. In addition, the soil quality in Haiti is below par. The population density in Haiti has lead to deforestation. Some authors of books covering Haitis poverty fight to say that Haiti is poor because of its people. Many, referring to the 19th century Haiti, have said that Haitians were lazy and ashamed to work, or spent too much money on rum. Currently, people have bashed Haitians for practicing voodoo religion instead of trying to help the country after the earthquake. Haiti suffers from terrible diseases including cholera. Diarrheal disease is the second leading cause of death among young children worldwide, and the leading cause of death among them as well. Most Haitians who are younger than five could expect to suffer from five cases of diarrhea per year. Approximately 10 children under the age of five died each day from diarrheal disease. Haiti also suffers from the lack of education, or the brain drain. This is the departure of educated or talented people for better pay or jobs elsewhere. Since Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, the few people who are educated leave Haiti and go to other countries that are wealthier and have more job opportunities. On top of all this, Haitis government is very corrupt. There are persistent allegations that some Haitian officials use their public office position to influence commercial dispute outcomes for personal gain. The Haitian law is deficient in a number of areas, including operation of judicial system and publication of laws, regulations, and official notices, for example. However, just because Haiti is in such bad shape right now, doesnt mean that it cant get better. [2] An increased inflow of money into Haiti is not the answer, because in this case, the money goes straight to the government, and not to the citizens in need. In order for Haiti to improve, the citizens of Haiti must receive more aid from the Haitian government, rather than let the government decide what the money is being put into. This can be done through an individual loaning program. The partnership between the government and the aid community is unequal. The money from aid to countries like Haiti relies greatly on a dozen or so international aid organizations

and the US government. Often times, donors bypass the Haitian government. Although Haiti needs aid, the government there is corrupt which can end up not helping Haitians much. This being said, individuals living in Haiti must partake in an individual loaning program where they can get a loan to boost their business. In this way, the money intended to help the Haitians as a whole will not get into the pockets of the Haitian government. [2] This is just one way to help Haiti. Another way, is to try to get rid of, or at least calm, the water-borne infectious disease Cholera. It has killed nearly 8.000 Haitians and made 620,000 ill since 2010. Every year since then, new cases of cholera are reported and death levels rise. This disease will remain a health threat for many years unless many more people get access to clean drinking water and the water and sanitation systems are improved. This will help lower the cases of cholera. In addition to improved water and sanitation systems, more homes must be built. The number of Haitians living in tent cities has fallen 77% from a peak of 1.5 million people. Now, more people than ever are living in makeshift camp settlements scattered around the capital. There is not enough construction being undergone in Haiti. With the addition of houses, not only will people be able to live more securely, but also will be healthier. Deforestation is also a large issue in Haiti. Haiti is left with less than two percent of its original forest cover. This can cause soil erosion and it reduces the ability of the soil to retain water. This can make Haiti more vulnerable to flooding and landslides when a hurricane or heavy rains hit. Haiti depends on trees as a main source of fuel, helping to cause deforestation. In order to shift this, Haitians must to start changing their ways from using charcoal burning stoves to other forms of energy including electricity and solar power. In order to prevent using up their main source of fuel. To switch, Haitians need help from donors. [1] Lastly, to make up for the brain drain, Haiti must make education a priority. The government has made providing free primary education a key priority, but still must move forward by continuing education through primary school and to keep the educated Haitians in Haiti by showing that the country can improve with the help of those who are educated. Even before the earthquake, only about two-thirds of Haitian children were enrolled in primary school, and less than one third of those reached sixth grade. If children could be educated to at least through high school, think of the difference it would make in the adults that they would grow up to be. [4] If Johanne were to have gone to school through high school, lived in a safe home, not be affected by deforestation or natural disasters, have clean water, and maybe some more money, think of the possibilities that would be in store for her. Instead of making dirt cookies for a living, she could be trying to pursue something that she really enjoys and could be making a lot more money off of it, which would help to support her and her family. If Haiti made these changes, Johanne wouldnt be in the situation she is in now. Little steps can help solve a big economic crisis. [5]