An economy under control and overly dependent on the United States.

The extremely high level of unemployment, the decline in productive activities, and the low family income of most national firms are some of the damages caused by the growing deficit in trade between the Republic of Haiti and the United States.

The Unit for Haitian Studies (UEH) of the Father José Luis Alemán Center for Economic and Social Studies of the Pontifical Catholic University of Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) has indicated this. These differences, which are due to the “structural and situational nature” that the neighboring country’s foreign trade plays with the world’s leading power, are also due to unfulfilled neoliberal promises indicating economic development, social welfare and prosperity of the country. With the United States 2007-January 2022.

From 2007 to January 2022, the poorest country in the Americas accumulated a deficit balance of approximately $5,371 million, as a result of an import value of $17,493 million higher than an export value of $12,123 million.

This includes the negative amount of $4,446 million collected over a 145-month period, between the catastrophic earthquake in 2010 and January 2022, due to the difference between exports ($10,633 million) and imports ($15.079 million).

Trade performance with the United States occurs regardless of the cyclical stages that the Haitian economy has gone through, understanding the economic and financial stagnation, the social and health epidemic, the political crisis and the unstable recovery, because it reflects a large free balance of 95 million US dollars, that is, a difference of 280% In trade it is observed from January 2019 (25 million USD) to the same period in 2022 (120 million USD).

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According to statistics from the 2007-2022 survey, Haiti’s great dependence on US trade relations is translated as: more than nine-tenths (93.1%) of the total value of exports, that is, about 13,023 million US dollars. Similarly, more than a third of the total imports (35.5%), which amounted to 49.240 million USD, and nearly one-seventh (14.8%) of the global red balance, which accumulated 36.217 million USD.

another source

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), in 2020, the Haitian economy is more dependent on imports than on exports, indicating the equivalent of $3.64 million and $1.03 million respectively.

The United States dominates its foreign trade. The majority of exports (all textiles) went to the United States with 83%, equivalent to $852 million. The rest is distributed in countries such as: Canada (5.3%) 54.6 million USD, Mexico (2.3%) cumulative figures 24.2 million USD and France (1.2%) 12.4 million USD.

Meanwhile, US imports amounted to 976 million US dollars, up 27%. Followed by the Dominican Republic as the second trading partner with 751 million US dollars (21%), and China came in third place, registering 709 million US dollars with 19.5%. Turkey (5%) $164 million. Indonesia (4%), $141 million and India (2.4%), followed by $89.5 million in the ranking of largest partners in 2020.

The main products were rice (25.1%), oil (21%), frozen meat and edible offal (7%), automobiles (4.1%), rotary transformers (3%), dried leguminous vegetables 2.4%, and sawnwood 2%. Shipped from the US to Haiti.

What is expected?

Based on the UEH report, in the past fifteen years, Haiti has not been able to achieve a period of surplus or equal balance, in its trade relationship with the northern country, but its main feature has been the trade deficit. To change this scenario, there is an urgent need to re-convert the production, investment and marketing of agricultural and industrial platforms, because as long as this society continues to buy more than it produces, it will not have the capacity to generate the imbalances itself, and therefore, will remain. Economic.

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Indeed, this can only be done if there is political will and a popular democratic reconstruction based on the exercise of human, collective and environmental rights. Also, there is real international solidarity beyond simulation, pointing to the investigation.

Aileen Morales

"Beer nerd. Food fanatic. Alcohol scholar. Tv practitioner. Writer. Troublemaker. Falls down a lot."

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