Haiti: A Once-in-a-Century Chance for Change: Beyond reconstruction: re-envisioning Haiti with equity, fairness, and opportunity

Haiti does not just need to be reconstructed, but in the words of Oxfam’s partners in Haiti, ‘reenvisioned’, too. Before the earthquake, 80 per cent of Haiti’s population lived on less than $2 per day. In rural areas, the figure was 90 per cent. Nearly 60 per cent of the population was undernourished, and one child in four was stunted as a result. Now nature has compounded these woes. The earthquake is the largest in proportional impact that any country has ever experienced. It could cost US$13.9bn and take 10 years to rebuild the country. Badly managed, reconstruction will deepen Haiti's suffering, benefiting the better-off more than the poor, perpetuating inequality, and creating new risks. But, if well handled, reconstruction can turn the aid industry cliché of 'build back better' into reality. Elsewhere, disasters have sometimes been the harbingers of profound social and economic change. The question is: what do Haitians need in order to recover from the earthquake in a way that can address the problems Haiti has faced for decades?