Money talks: Haiti is losing big money by not accommodating expats from the United States and Canada

Expatriate Economics: Many middle-class men and women retiring in the United States, with the little pension money they have, are looking for another country nearby where they can live reasonably well without spending too much. Haiti could have taken advantage of that but we are not.


ONLY in Haiti - Hanging out on top of the World at the Citadelle

An American expat living in the Dominican Republic was being interviewed and was asked why did he choose to reside in the Dominican Republic and not Haiti. His reply is worth thinking about.

"I love the Haitian people," he said, "but Haiti is not designed to accommodate people like me."

"In Haiti," he continued, "either you are rich or you are poor. They are only accommodations for these two types of people there is no middle ground."

"Consider hotels, for example, it costs anywhere between $100 to $200 U.S. to get a decent hotel with running water, electricity and WiFi in Haiti, or you get a cheap hotel for like $10 U.S. and you get nothing, maybe you will have one light bulb in the room and no running water. There is no middle ground," he said.

Because there is no middle class in Haiti there is no middle class amenities.

Because there is no middle class amenities, there are no places for middle-class tourists, expatriates and lower middle-class American and Canadian retirees who would love to spend they thousand-dollar-or-less retirement income in sunny Haiti to come to, live and enjoy.

Many of them choose the other side of the Island of Hispaniola to spend that money, and you wonder why the Dominican Republic is moving forward and we're not...

Something for the Haitian government to think about.

There are lots of foreigners with money in hand looking for a decent living environment in the Caribbean. Isn't it time we created a Haiti for them too?

What do you think about that?

Write a comment  (8)

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All Comments (8)

Jack says...

Why should Haiti allow expats to retire in their country then rub salt in Haitians' wounds?

Yes I'm an American all of my life. I've traveled extensively throughout central and south America, Asia and Europe.

I've seen first hand how Americans, Aussies, British and Canadians behave throughout Latin America, Africa, and yes Haiti.

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Patrick Princivil says...

Manti, janm konnen Ayisyen sa yo renmen dola

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Parfait Bellot says...

I agree with you, the Haitian government need to think about that. Haiti will benefit a lot from Haitians

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Franckner says...

True i feel the same. And may I add no security in Haiti scare me away. Labadee the closest for

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F Estiverne says...

For my simple lifestyle it is cheaper to live in Paris than

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Alexa says...

That is so true! Between December 2016 and July 2017, I made four stays in the Motherland where I'm trying to have some activities that would help the people.

The hotels where I've stayed cost $104, 88, 70 and 68 dollars a night.

For 8 days, it makes for a big bill.

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Tontonbob says...

There are lots of place in Haiti to retire.

Westerners are way too

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Expats In Haiti says...

Beaucoup d'hommes et de femmes de la classe moyenne qui prennent leur retraite aux États-Unis, avec le peu d'argent dont ils disposent, cherchent un autre pays à proximité où ils peuvent vivre raisonnablement bien sans dépenser trop. Haïti aurait pu en profiter mais nous n'en profitons pas.

Un expatrié américain vivant en République dominicaine était interviewé et on lui a demandé pourquoi il avait choisi de résider en République dominicaine et non en Haïti. Sa réponse vaut la peine d'y penser.

"J'adore le peuple haïtien", at-il dit, "mais Haïti n'est pas conçu pour accueillir des gens comme moi."

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