ar2018-haiti-hero

Haiti

Photo by Jeffrey Brown

Members of PCI's Humanitarian Assistance and Resilience team traveled to Haiti in September 2018 to conduct a post-project sustainability study of its Katye project, which was implemented in the wake of the country's 2010 earthquake. Katye used a methodology known as the "Neighborhood Approach" to meet the immediate humanitarian needs of Ravine Pintade residents while also laying the foundation for recovery and rebuilding of a community that would be more resilient in the face of future disasters. The post-project sustainability study assessed the long-term impact and sustainability of the Katye project, now nine years after the earthquake. The team also did a comparative analysis with communities that did not use the Neighborhood Approach.

"Katye gave us evenings. Before the earthquake, we didn't sit outside and talk at night with neighbors. Now we have places to sit and lighting. The neighborhood feels safe and more social and friendly."
- Ravine Pintade resident and Katye study participant

The team found that the housing solutions and other work done to neighborhood-level infrastructure-including foundations, drainage, roads, lighting, pathways, retaining walls, stairs, and water and sanitation systems-have continued to make a significant impact on the community and its ability to recover. And government officials continue to use Katye as a point of reference for Haiti's broader neighborhood-based reconstruction efforts.

Conversely, in other sites visited that received more traditional forms of humanitarian assistance, communities have not been able to address issues associated with vulnerability, such as water and sanitation systems, improved housing, drainage, access and egress, and risk mitigation, leaving them highly vulnerable to many shocks and stresses.