Haiti’s national calamity has led to massive emigration. It is estimated that a third of all Haitians in the world today live outside Haiti. This “Diaspora,” an ancient Greek term that is often used pejoratively, resides mostly in the United States, with an estimated 2.5 million or more [700,000 in New York, 500,000 in Florida, 150,000 each in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Illinois, 80,000 in Georgia and then across the country, even to California. Others reside in Canada [up to 100,000], Europe and Africa [up to 30,000 each] and the Caribbean islands, predominantly the Dominican Republic [up to a million] and an estimated 25 percent of the population of the Baham as.

There are five important aspects of Diaspora relations with Haiti:

• The State of the Diaspora – Some Haitians living abroad have reached prominence. For example, Michaele Jean is the Governor General of Canada. In the United States, Patrick Gaspard is the political director for President Barak Obama. Haitian-born Wyclef Jean is a popular-music celebrity. Dumarsais Simeus created a large international food company. Jacqueline Charles is an award-winning newspaper journalist. In addition, there are scores of Haitian artists, performers, elected officials, doctors, lawyers and other professionals worldwide. The Haitian-American company EducaVision recently published, “Who is Who in Haitian Diaspora” that profiles and pictures approximately1500 notables. This gives an idea of the significant current and potential clout among Haitians living abroad. Future generations will no doubt become more influential. But beyond this celebrated fraction, the general Diaspora is economically poor and victim of disunity, prejudice, foreign language and customs. The average Haitian factory worker earns less than US$12,000 a year, refugee boat people who reach Florida shores are typically jailed and/or deported, and the “batey children” in the Dominican Republic are neither schooled nor entitled to a birth certificate. In effect, they are children without a country.

• The “Brain-Drain”- The World Bank recently estimated that more than 80% of all Haitian Professionals in the world - doctors, lawyers, engineers, architects, and financiers project managers, etc. – currently live outside Haiti. This number has probably swelled since the January 12, 2010’s Earthquakes. This situation, caused by years of persecution, economic and environmental crisis in Haiti alarms experts on Haitian affairs, the United Nations, major institutions and participants at this year’s Haitian Diaspora Unity Congress. They have all called for a “Reverse Brain Drain.” They, all, agree, of course, that this will require measurable improvement in peace and justice, land and property laws, trade processes, cessation of human rights abuse and corruption, better-educated workforce, professional civil service, and overall spirit of competitiveness in the world

  For many years, Haitians living abroad, experts on Haitian affairs, foreign aid donors and Haitian nationals alike have persistently called on the Diaspora to become seriously involved in Haiti’s development. Specifically, the call is to go “beyond remittances” and towards directing their time, money and expertise into infrastructure, small businesses, new towns, ecology, schools and local self-determination. The apparent experience of Rwanda may have fueled these calls. After the genocide, Rwandans wanted a development path that included the safe return and integration of its refugees, particularly the educated professionals. Today, fifteen years later, albeit imperfect, Rwanda seems renewed. Similarly, Haitians recognize that several decades of emigrant “brain drain” have left the country without an educated middle class and a principled civil service. It also recognizes that “Diaspora-less” turnkey foreign aid to Haiti, including billions of dollars of less-than-transparent cash, loans and contracts, has by-and-large failed to bring the desired justice, political stability, literacy, food and energy self-reliance, health and welfare, disaster preparedness expected of modern nation states.

  The past year was marked by several changes in analysis and perspective on Haitian development. This began with Dr. Paul Collier’s recommendations to the United Nations Security Council, followed by Haiti’s call for “new paradigms” in donor relations, followed by the appointment of ex-President Bill Clinton as U.N. Special Envoy to Haiti. Clinton’s two-year assignment is to introduce private investment, appropriate technology and improved coordination among humanitarian, civic, environmental and charitable organizations. As part of the chains, Dr. Robert Maguire, in his February 2010 post-earthquakes testimony to the US Senate, told the Subcommittee on Foreign Assistance: “Haiti’s Diaspora offers bountiful evidence of what can be achieved when opportunities are twined with talents.” Yet, this available pool of talents has yet to be invited to the table in a meaningful way.

• Remittances - The Diaspora has been of significant economic support to friends and families in Haiti. The World Bank and others estimate that total remittances through mail, bank accounts and wire service transfers are well over US$1.8 billion annually. This is comparable in magnitude to 1/3 Haiti’s Gross National Product and those remittances do not account for additional money brought to Haiti when visiting for funerals, carnivals and annual village festivals (“fet champet”). Sadly, remittances are decreasing due partly to the current global economic crisis. But the bigger danger is that the older generation of Diaspora contributors is soon to retire, leaving a younger generation that seems not as “attached” to Haiti; indeed most have never visited the country. Without efforts to create and renew interest, remittances will decline, meaning less immediate economic support to Haitians for food, clothing, shelter, transportation, school tuition and medical costs. And it must be remembered that little if any remittances go for what could be called “development,” e.g. contributions to people who build and repair infrastructure, reforest the countryside, improve agricultural systems, install renewable energy, etc.
• Retirement - A large portion of the Diaspora population is reaching retirement age. Many of them are nostalgic for “the Haiti they remember,” and still have the energy and interest to be part of civil society. Collectively, they have considerable skills and life experience, plus economic assets in the form of job pensions, stock market and real estate investments, personal saving accounts and other income. With encouragement and coordination, they could bring a missing middle class to Haiti to start businesses to create jobs and to help the country meet its human resources needs. This emphasizes the urgent need to attract the Diaspora, especially the willing retirees and the unattached but curious youth generation to
  
• Organizing - Haiti’s Diaspora has many groups, such as samples included in Fonkoze’s “Haitian Hometown Associations” that voluntarily organize in their adopted countries to help whole communities back home. But linkages among them are tenuous, and they are often divided and isolated among political, religious and regional lines, similar to the thousands of non-Haitian organizations, churches and charities who work in the country. The result is fragmentation of voice, purpose and action that consume millions of dollars and tens of thousands of volunteer and professional annually but at the end of the day seems to leave little progress to show for all the apparent concern. Bill Clinton, U.N. Special Envoy to Haiti, noted this while speaking to the Diaspora Unity Congress in Miami Beach, Florida.

  Still, the general belief is the so-called polarized Diaspora is evolving in unity to benefit its homeland development the same as others have done for India, China and Mexico, for example. Following the Miami unity Congress, the Haitian American Elected officials have coalesced. Preparatory meeting were held in Washington to form a coalition for better representation. Haitian Americans were invited to testify in Congress. Above all, the unfortunate January 12, 2010 Earthquakes brought more resolves. First, The Haitian Diaspora doubled its remittances and was the first to bring food, medicines, water, professional assistance and cash to Haiti in response to the January 12th earthquake, when the banks were not functioning. Up to today, the diaspora continues to volunteer its services in Haiti. Then on March 21-23, 450-worldwide Haitian Diaspora delegation, hosted by the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington, DC, infused its input into the reconstruction and development plan of Haiti. At the end of the forum, The Haitian Diaspora Federation was created on the heels of the OAS newly unveiled Toussaint L’Ouverture Salon. Then, a 2-member Haitian Diaspora delegation presented the “Diaspora input” at the United Nations Donors Conference in New York on March 31, 2010. Shortly before the OAS-Sponsored Forum, Dr. Robert Maguire in his February 2010 post-earthquakes testimony to the US Senate told the Subcommittee on Foreign Assistance: “Haiti’s Diaspora offers bountiful evidence of what can be achieved when opportunities are twined with talents.”

  Regretfully, the diaspora involvement has, so far, been limited only to meetings and ceremonious participation. For example, this Diaspora with all of its talents, cultural competencies, and economic capacity and support to Haiti, has only been offered just a non-voting seat at the newly formed Haiti Interim Commission. Unfortunately, the meaningful engagement of the Haitian Diaspora has been inhibited, restrained and limited by neglect, lack of funds, and expert coordination and communication. Since development is endogenous, more than ever, Haiti needs the seasoned cultural competencies of all its sons and daughters. Thus, quitting is not an option.