{{Short description|Country in the Caribbean}}
{{Redirect|Hayti|other uses|Haiti (disambiguation)|and|Hayti (disambiguation)}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Republic of Haiti
| common_name = Haiti
| native_name = {{native name list |tag1=fr |name1=République d'Haïti |tag2=ht |name2=Repiblik Ayiti}}
| image_flag = Flag of Haiti.svg
| image_coat = Coat of arms of Haiti.svg
| national_motto = {{native name list |tag1=fr |name1=[[Liberté, égalité, fraternité]] |tag2=ht |name2=Libète, egalite, fratènite}}"Liberty, equality, fraternity"[{{cite web |translator-last1=del Carmen Gress |translator-first1=Maria |translator-last2=Ruchti |translator-first2=Jefri J. |title=Haiti 1987 (rev. 2012) Constitution |url=https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Haiti_2012 |website=The Constitute Project |publisher=William S. Hein & Co., Inc. |access-date=17 June 2026 |language=en}}]
| national_anthem = {{lang|fr|[[La Dessalinienne]]}}
"The Dessaline"{{center|[[File:Haiti National Anthem.ogg]]}}
| image_map = {{switcher | [[File:Haiti (orthographic projection).svg|frameless]] | Location in the Western Hemisphere | [[File:Map of Haiti and the neighboring countries.jpg|frameless]] | Haiti and its neighbors }}
| image_map2 =
| capital = [[Port-au-Prince]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|18|32|10|N|72|20|47|W|type:city}}
| largest_city = Port-au-Prince
| official_languages = {{hlist|[[Haitian French|French]]|[[Haitian Creole]]}}
| ethnic_groups = 95% [[Afro-Haitians|African]]
5% [[Demographics of Haiti#Ethnic groups|other]][{{cite web|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/interactives/religious-composition-by-country-2010-2050/|title=Religious Composition by Country, 2010–2050|date=21 December 2022|publisher=[[Pew Research Center]]|access-date=2 August 2020|archive-date=27 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227084932/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/interactives/religious-composition-by-country-2010-2050/|url-status=live}}]
| demonym = [[Haitians|Haitian]]
| government_type = [[Semi-presidential republic]] (''[[de jure]]'')
| leader_title1 = [[President of Haiti|President]]
| leader_name1 = ''Vacant''
| leader_title2 = [[Prime Minister of Haiti|Prime Minister]]
| leader_name2 = [[Alix Didier Fils-Aimé]] (acting)[{{cite news |last1=Robles |first1=Frances |title=Haitian Prime Minister Is Fired, Adding to the Nation's Turmoil |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/10/us/haiti-prime-minister-garry-conille-fired.html |access-date=10 November 2024 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=10 November 2024 |archive-date=10 November 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241110220503/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/10/us/haiti-prime-minister-garry-conille-fired.html |url-status=live }}]
| legislature = [[National Assembly (Haiti)|National Assembly]] (vacant)
| upper_house = [[Senate (Haiti)|Senate]]
| lower_house = [[Chamber of Deputies (Haiti)|Chamber of Deputies]]
| sovereignty_type = [[Haitian Revolution|Independence from France]]
| established_event1 = [[Haitian Declaration of Independence|Independence declared]]
| established_date1 = 1 January 1804
| established_event2 = Independence recognized
| established_date2 = 17 April 1825
| established_event3 = [[First Empire of Haiti|First Empire]]
| established_date3 = 22 September 1804
| established_event4 = [[Republic of Haiti (1806–1820)|Southern Republic]]
| established_date4 = 17 October 1806
| established_event5 = [[State of Haiti|Northern State]]
| established_date5 = 17 October 1806
| established_event6 = [[Kingdom of Haiti|Kingdom]]
| established_date6 = 28 March 1811
| established_event7 = [[Unification of Hispaniola]]
| established_date7 = 9 February 1822
| established_event8 = Dissolution
| established_date8 = 27 February 1844
| established_event9 = [[Second Empire of Haiti|Second Empire]]
| established_date9 = 26 August 1849
| established_event10 = [[Republic of Haiti (1859–1957)|Republic]]
| established_date10 = 15 January 1859
| established_event11 = [[United States occupation of Haiti|United States occupation]]
| established_date11 = 28 July 1915 – 1 August 1934
| established_event12 = Independence from the United States
| established_date12 = 15 August 1934
| established_event13 = [[Constitution of Haiti|Current constitution]]
| established_date13 = 20 June 2012
| area_km2 = 27,700[{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/summaries/#geography|title=Country Summary|publisher=Central Intelligence Agency|access-date=1 September 2023|via=CIA.gov|archive-date=17 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817125957/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/summaries/#geography|url-status=dead}}][{{Cite web |date=11 May 2025 |title=Human Development Report 2025 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/specific-country-data#/countries/HTI |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]] |access-date=14 May 2025 |archive-date=12 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220812054834/https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/specific-country-data#/countries/HTI |url-status=live }}]
| area_rank = 143rd
| area_sq_mi = 10,714
| percent_water = 0.7
| population_estimate = {{IncreaseNeutral}} 11,906,096[{{citeweb|title=Haiti {{!}} Rights Mapping and Analysis Platform|url=https://rimap.unhcr.org/countries/haiti|publisher=[[UNHCR]]|year=2025}}]
| population_estimate_year = 2025
| population_estimate_rank = 83rd
| population_density_km2 = 417
| population_density_sq_mi = 1,071
| population_density_rank = 32nd
| GDP_PPP = {{increase}} $38.200 billion[{{cite web |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2025 |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2025/april |language=en |access-date=25 June 2025 |archive-date=28 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250428212902/https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2025/April |url-status=live }}]
| GDP_PPP_year = 2025
| GDP_PPP_rank = 144th
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $3,040[{{cite web|url=https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/haiti/overview|title=Haiti Overview: Development news, research, data|access-date=14 November 2024|archive-date=21 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021060233/https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/haiti/overview|url-status=live}}]
| Gini_rank =
| HDI = 0.554
| HDI_year = 2023
| HDI_change = increase
| HDI_ref = [{{cite web|url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00000626/00001/5j|title=Konstitisyon Repiblik Ayiti 1987|publisher=Ufdc.ufl.edu|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922030419/https://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00000626/00001/5j|url-status=live}}]}}{{efn|name=Hayti|1=The nation was officially founded as ''Hayti'' in its Declaration of Independence and early prints,[{{Cite web|url=https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C12756259|title=Catalogue description Haitian Declaration of Independence|date=1 January 1804|via=National Archive of the UK|access-date=23 May 2020|archive-date=7 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207090330/https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C12756259|url-status=live}}][{{Cite web|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/dol/images/examples/haiti/0001.pdf|title=National Archives – Haiti|access-date=1 September 2023|archive-date=1 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210101215521/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/dol/images/examples/haiti/0001.pdf|url-status=live}}] constitutions,[[https://sema-kama.org/la-constitution-imperiale-du-20-mai-1805/ La Constitution Impériale du 20 mai 1805]{{Dead link|date=July 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}] and imperial declarations.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.brown.edu/Facilities/John_Carter_Brown_Library/exhibitions/remember_haiti/rev_henri-christophe.php|title=Remember Haiti | Revolution | Royaume d'Hayti. Déclaration du roi.|website=brown.edu|access-date=23 May 2020|archive-date=7 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207090322/https://www.brown.edu/Facilities/John_Carter_Brown_Library/exhibitions/remember_haiti/rev_henri-christophe.php|url-status=live}}] Published writings of 1802–1919 in the United States commonly used the name ''Hayti'' (e.g. ''The Blue Book of Hayti'' (1919), a book with official standing in Haiti). By 1873 ''Haiti'' was common among titles of US published books as well as in US congressional publications. In all of [[Frederick Douglass]]' publications after 1890, he used ''Haiti''. As late as 1949, the name ''Hayti'' continued to be used in books published in England (e.g. ''Hayti: 145 Years of Independence—The Bi-Centenary of Port-au-Prince'' published in London, England in 1949) but by 1950, usage in England had shifted to ''Haiti''.[{{cite web|url=http://faculty.webster.edu/corbetre/haiti-archive-new/msg17201.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309003250/http://faculty.webster.edu/corbetre/haiti-archive-new/msg17201.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=9 March 2017|title=17201: Corbett: Hayti and Haiti in the English language|editor=Corbett, Bob|date=9 November 2003|publisher=Webster University|access-date=8 March 2017}}]}} is a country in the [[Caribbean]] on the island of [[Hispaniola]] in the [[Caribbean Sea]], east of [[Cuba]] and [[Jamaica]] and south of [[The Bahamas]]. It occupies the western side of the island, which it shares with the [[Dominican Republic]].[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=de9NDQAAQBAJ|title=Vascular Surgery: A Global Perspective|editor=Dardik, Alan|page=341|year=2016|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-3-319-33745-6|access-date=8 May 2017}}][{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5wBsDQAAQBAJ|title=Current Affairs November 2016 eBook|editor=Josh, Jagran|page=93|year=2016|access-date=8 May 2017}}] Haiti is the third largest country in the Caribbean by area, and with an estimated population of 11.4 million, it is the most populous Caribbean country.{{UN Population|ref}}[{{Cite web |last=André |first=Vania |date=2024-06-16 |title=6 Fast facts about Haiti and the Caribbean you should know |url=https://haitiantimes.com/2024/06/16/6-fast-facts-about-haiti-and-the-caribbean-you-should-know/#:~:text=Haiti%20is%20the%20most%20populous,estimated%20population%20of%2011%20million. |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=The Haitian Times |language=en-US |archive-date=8 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241008200157/https://haitiantimes.com/2024/06/16/6-fast-facts-about-haiti-and-the-caribbean-you-should-know/#:~:text=Haiti%20is%20the%20most%20populous,estimated%20population%20of%2011%20million. |url-status=live }}] The capital and largest city is [[Port-au-Prince]].
Haiti was originally inhabited by [[Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean|Indigenous peoples]], known as the [[Taíno|Taíno]].[{{cite news|last1=Lawler|first1=Andrew|date=23 December 2020|title=Invaders nearly wiped out Caribbean's first people long before Spanish came, DNA reveals|url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/12/invaders-nearly-wiped-out-caribbeans-first-people-long-before-spanish-came-dna-reveals/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201223160603/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/12/invaders-nearly-wiped-out-caribbeans-first-people-long-before-spanish-came-dna-reveals/|archive-date=23 December 2020|work=National Geographic}}] In 1492, [[Christopher Columbus]] established the first European settlement in the [[Americas]], [[La Navidad]], on its northeastern coast.[{{cite journal|last=Davies|first=Arthur|title=The Loss of the Santa Maria Christmas Day, 1492|journal=The American Historical Review|year=1953|volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=854–865|doi=10.1086/ahr/58.4.854|issn=0002-8762}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.nilstremmel.com/haiti/f_noframes.htm|title=Haïti histoire – 7 Bord de Mer de Limonade|publisher=Nilstremmel.com|access-date=15 July 2014|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922113243/http://www.nilstremmel.com/haiti/f_noframes.htm|url-status=live}}] The island was part of the [[Spanish Empire]] until 1697, when the western portion was [[Peace of Ryswick|ceded to France]] and became [[Saint-Domingue]], dominated by [[Sugar plantations in the Caribbean|sugarcane plantations]] worked by enslaved Africans. The 1791–1804 [[Haitian Revolution]] made Haiti the first [[sovereign state]] in the Caribbean, the second [[republic]] in the Americas, the first country in the Americas to officially abolish slavery, and the only country in history established by a [[slave revolt]].[{{cite journal|title=Anacaona, Golden Flower|last=Danticat|first=Edwidge|journal=Journal of Haitian Studies|publisher=Scholastic Inc.|year=2005|isbn=978-0-439-49906-4|volume=11|location=New York|pages=163–165|jstor=41715319|author-link=Edwidge Danticat|issue=2}}][{{cite journal|last=Matthewson|first=Tim|year=1996|title=Jefferson and the Nonrecognition of Haiti|journal=Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society|volume=140|issue=1|pages=22–48|issn=0003-049X|jstor=987274}}][{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1202772.stm|title=Country profile: Haiti|date=19 January 2010|work=BBC News|access-date=23 January 2010|archive-date=1 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901044854/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1202772.stm|url-status=live}}] The independent state began as an [[First Empire of Haiti|empire]], later splitting into two nations before [[Republic of Haiti (1820–1849)|reunifying]] in 1820; a [[Second Empire of Haiti|second empire]] was established under [[Faustin Soulouque]] before the [[Republic of Haiti (1859–1957)|return of the republic]] in 1859. The 19th century also saw political instability, international isolation, a crippling [[Haitian independence debt|debt to France]], and failed invasions of the Dominican Republic, including [[Dominican War of Independence|a costly war]]. [[United States occupation of Haiti|U.S. forces occupied Haiti]] from 1915 to 1934,[{{cite book|last=Benjamin Beede|title=The War of 1898 and U.S. Interventions, 1898–1934: An Encyclopedia|year=1994|edition=1 May 1994|pages=[https://archive.org/details/americanrevoluti0000unse_o8w2/page/784 784]|publisher=Routledge; 1 edition|isbn=0-8240-5624-8|url=https://archive.org/details/americanrevoluti0000unse_o8w2/page/784}} - p 223]
''The Haitian and U.S. governments reached a mutually satisfactory agreement in the Executive Accord of August 7, 1933, and on August 15, the last marines departed.'' followed by the dictatorial rule of the [[Duvalier family]] (1957–1986). Following a [[1991 Haitian coup d'état|coup d'état in 1991]], a U.S.-led multinational force [[Operation Uphold Democracy|intervened in 1994]]; a [[2004 Haitian coup d'état|second coup in 2004]] was followed by a [[United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti|United Nations intervention]]. In the 2010s, [[2010 Haiti earthquake|a catastrophic earthquake]] and [[2010s Haiti cholera outbreak|a large-scale cholera outbreak]] devastated the country.[{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2022/09/22/haiti-riots-triggered-by-imf-advice-to-cut-fuel-subsidies/?sh=406676905169|title=Haiti Riots Triggered By IMF Advice To Cut Fuel Subsidies|work=Forbes|last=Shellenberger|first=Michael|date=22 September 2022|access-date=18 October 2022|archive-date=22 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022000112/https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2022/09/22/haiti-riots-triggered-by-imf-advice-to-cut-fuel-subsidies/?sh=406676905169|url-status=live}}]
Historically poor and politically unstable, Haiti has faced [[Haitian crisis (2018–present)|severe economic and political crises]], [[Gang war in Haiti|gang activity]] displacing over 1.3 million,[{{Cite web |title=Gang violence displaces a record 1.3 million Haitians |work=[[UN News]] |date=11 June 2025 |access-date=8 July 2025 |url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/06/1164286 |archive-date=9 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250709123113/https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/06/1164286 |url-status=live }}][{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/18/haiti-un-talks-gangs-hunger-cholera|title=Haiti on verge of collapse, NGOs warn as UN talks on restoring order continue|last=Taylor|first=Luke|date=18 October 2022|website=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=24 October 2022|archive-date=14 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114025039/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/oct/18/haiti-un-talks-gangs-hunger-cholera|url-status=live}}] and the collapse of its government. The presidency has been vacant since the [[Assassination of Jovenel Moïse|2021 assassination]] of [[Jovenel Moïse]], while the [[National Assembly (Haiti)|National Assembly]] and the judiciary have been rendered inoperative, leaving the country in virtual anarchy with almost nonexistent state control. One of the world's [[least developed countries]] and with no elected officials remaining, Haiti has been described as a [[failed state]].[{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/10/haiti-no-elected-officials-anarchy-failed-state|title=Haiti left with no elected government officials as it spirals towards anarchy|last=Taylor|first=Luke|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=11 January 2023|access-date=10 February 2023|archive-date=8 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208113432/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/10/haiti-no-elected-officials-anarchy-failed-state|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|url=https://news.yahoo.com/violence-haiti-worsens-canada-bets-153056650.html|title=As violence in Haiti worsens, Canada bets on assistance to police|last=Charles|first=Jacqueline|date=3 May 2023|access-date=3 May 2023|newspaper=[[Miami Herald]]|archive-date=3 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230503212914/https://news.yahoo.com/violence-haiti-worsens-canada-bets-153056650.html|url-status=live}}]
Haiti is a founding member of the [[United Nations]], [[Organization of American States]],[{{cite web|url=http://www.oas.org/en/member_states/member_state.asp?sCode=HAI|title=OAS – Member State: Haiti|publisher=OAS – Organization of American States: Democracy for peace, security, and development|author=|date=1 August 2009|website=oas.org|access-date=23 April 2017|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922060853/http://www.oas.org/en/member_states/member_state.asp?sCode=HAI|url-status=live}}] [[Association of Caribbean States]],[{{cite web|url=http://www.acs-aec.org/sites/default/files/english_ebook_acs_20_low_res.pdf|title=Association of Caribbean States (1994–2014)|author=|page=46|year=2014|access-date=25 April 2016|archive-date=11 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220811112704/http://www.acs-aec.org/sites/default/files/english_ebook_acs_20_low_res.pdf|url-status=live}}] and the {{Lang|fr|[[Organisation internationale de la Francophonie]]|italic=no}}. In addition to [[CARICOM]], it is a member of the [[International Monetary Fund]],[{{cite web|url=https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/memdir/memdate.htm|title=International Monetary Fund: List of Members|website=imf.org|access-date=23 April 2017|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074955/https://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/memdir/memdate.htm|url-status=live}}] [[World Trade Organization]],[{{cite web|url=https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/org6_e.htm|title=WTO ¦ World Trade Organization: Members and Observers|website=wto.org|access-date=23 April 2017|archive-date=29 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629193816/http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/org6_e.htm|url-status=live}}] and [[Community of Latin American and Caribbean States]].
==Etymology==
''Haiti'' (also earlier ''Hayti''){{efn|name=Hayti}} comes from the Indigenous [[Taíno language]] and means "land of high mountains";[{{cite book|last1=Haydn|first1=Joseph|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HOE8AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA321|title=A Dictionary of Dates Relating to All Ages and Nations: For Universal Reference Comprehending Remarkable Occurrences, Ancient and Modern, The Foundation, Laws, and Governments of Countries-Their Progress In Civilization, Industry, Arts and Science-Their Achievements In Arms-And Their Civil, Military, And Religious Institutions, And Particularly of the British Empire|last2=Vincent|first2=Benjamin|year=1860|page=321|access-date=12 September 2015|archive-date=15 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115064744/https://books.google.com/books?id=HOE8AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA321|url-status=live}}] it was the Native name{{efn|1=The Taínos may have used ''Bohío'' as another name for the island.[{{cite book|last1=Guitar|first1=Lynne|last2=Ferbel-Azcárate|first2=Pedro|last3=Estevez|first3=Jorge|title=Indigenous Resurgence in the Contemporary Caribbean|date=2006|publisher=Peter Lang Publishing|location=New York|isbn=978-0-8204-7488-5|page=41|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qXZeQZMDpgYC&pg=PA41|access-date=10 July 2015|chapter=iii: Ocama-Daca Taíno (Hear me, I am Taíno)|lccn=2005012816|archive-date=17 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217144430/https://books.google.com/books?id=qXZeQZMDpgYC&pg=PA41|url-status=live}}][{{cite book|last1=Edmond|first1=Louisket|title=The Tears of Haiti|date=2010|publisher=[[Xlibris]]|isbn=978-1-4535-1770-3|page=42|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_1wDXEB1fOUC&pg=PA42|access-date=10 July 2015|lccn=2010908468|archive-date=17 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217144430/https://books.google.com/books?id=_1wDXEB1fOUC&pg=PA42|url-status=live}}][{{cite book|last1=Senauth|first1=Frank|title=The Making and Destruction of Haiti|date=2011|publisher=[[AuthorHouse]]|location=Bloomington, Indiana, US|isbn=978-1-4567-5384-9|page=1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QBdccuwnqY8C&pg=PA1|lccn=2011907203|access-date=10 July 2015|archive-date=17 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217144431/https://books.google.com/books?id=QBdccuwnqY8C&pg=PA1|url-status=live}}]}} for the entire island of [[Hispaniola]]. The name was restored by Haitian revolutionary [[Jean-Jacques Dessalines]] as the official name of independent [[Saint-Domingue]], as a tribute to the Amerindian predecessors.[{{cite book|last=Martineau|first=Harriet|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lp54N7g2CYQC&pg=PA12|title=The Hour and the Man: A Fictional Account of the Haitian Revolution and the life of Toussaint L'Ouverture|year=2010|isbn=978-99904-1-167-6|page=12|publisher=Aruba Heritage Foundation|access-date=12 September 2015|archive-date=15 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115071324/https://books.google.com/books?id=lp54N7g2CYQC&pg=PA12|url-status=live}}] Another theory on the name Haiti is its origin in African tradition; in Fon language, one of the most spoken by the bossales (Haitians born in Africa), [http://faculty.webster.edu/corbetre/haiti-archive/msg02162.html Ayiti-Tomè]{{Dead link|date=May 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }} means: "From nowadays this land is our land."{{Citation needed|date=April 2024}}
In French, the ''[[ï]]'' in ''Ha'''ï'''ti'' has a diacritical mark, a [[Diaeresis (diacritic)#French|diaeresis]] (used to show that the second vowel is pronounced separately, as in the word ''na'''ï'''ve''), while the ''H'' is silent.[{{cite book|last=Stein|first=Gail|title=The Complete Idiot's Guide to Learning French|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zaT3kj55aTcC&pg=PA18|year=2003|publisher=Alpha Books|isbn=978-1-59257-055-3|page=18}}] (In English, this rule for the pronunciation is often disregarded, thus the spelling ''Haiti'' is used.) There are different anglicizations for its pronunciation such as ''HIGH-ti'', ''high-EE-ti'' and ''haa-EE-ti'', which are still in use, but ''HAY-ti'' is the most widespread and best-established.[{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/legacy/magazinemonitor/2010/01/how_to_say_haiti_and_portaupri.shtml|title=How to Say: Haiti and Port-au-Prince|publisher=BBC|access-date=19 November 2014|archive-date=19 November 2014|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141119070029/http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/legacy/magazinemonitor/2010/01/how_to_say_haiti_and_portaupri.shtml|url-status=dead}}] In French, Haiti's nickname is ''La Perle des Antilles'' ("Pearl of the Antilles") because of both its natural beauty[{{cite web|last=Eldin|first=F.|year=1878|title=Haïti, 13 ans de séjour aux Antilles|trans-title=Haiti, 13 years of stay in the Antilles|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3xAIAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA33|access-date=21 July 2015|page=33|language=fr|archive-date=15 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115071326/https://books.google.com/books?id=3xAIAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA33|url-status=live}}] and the amount of wealth it accumulated for the [[Kingdom of France]].[{{Cite web|year=1797|title=Voyage a Saint-Domingue, pendant les années 1788, 1789 et 1790|trans-title=Travel to Santo Domingo, during the years 1788, 1789 and 1790|url=https://archive.org/details/voyagesaintdomin00wimp|access-date=31 March 2018|language=fr}}] In [[Haitian Creole]], it is spelled and pronounced with a ''y'' but no ''H'': {{langx|ht|Ayiti|label=none}}. In the Haitian community the country has multiple nicknames: Ayiti-Toma (as its origin in Ayiti Tomè), Ayiti-Cheri (Ayiti my Darling), Tè-Desalin (Dessalines' Land) or Lakay (Home).{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}
==History==
{{Main|History of Haiti}}
===Pre-Columbian era===
[[File:Copia de Cacicazgos de la Hispaniola.png|thumb|upright=1.6|The five [[cacique]]doms of Hispaniola at the time of the arrival of Christopher Columbus]]
{{Main|Chiefdoms of Hispaniola}}
The island of Hispaniola, of which Haiti occupies the western three-eighths,[{{Cite journal|last1=Fernandes|first1=Daniel M.|last2=Sirak|first2=Kendra A.|last3=Ringbauer|first3=Harald|last4=Sedig|first4=Jakob|last5=Rohland|first5=Nadin|last6=Cheronet|first6=Olivia|last7=Mah|first7=Matthew|last8=Mallick|first8=Swapan|last9=Olalde|first9=Iñigo |last10=Culleton |first10=Brendan J.|last11=Adamski|first11=Nicole|last12=Bernardos|first12=Rebecca|last13=Bravo|first13=Guillermo|last14=Broomandkhoshbacht|first14=Nasreen|last15=Callan|first15=Kimberly|date=2021-02-04|title=A genetic history of the pre-contact Caribbean|journal=Nature|language=en|volume=590|issue=7844|pages=103–110|bibcode=2021Natur.590..103F|doi=10.1038/s41586-020-03053-2|issn=0028-0836|pmc=7864882|pmid=33361817}}]
In Taíno society the largest unit of political organization was led by a ''[[cacique]]'', or chief, as the Europeans understood them. At the time of European contact, Hispaniola was divided among five 'caciquedoms': the Magua in the northeast, the Marien in the northwest, the Jaragua in the southwest, the Maguana in the central regions of Cibao, and the Higüey in the southeast.[{{cite book|last=Cassá|first=Roberto|title=Los Indios de Las Antillas|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oJ-wJ49cNwAC&pg=PA126|year=1992|publisher=Editorial Abya Yala|isbn=978-84-7100-375-1|pages=126–|access-date=27 June 2015|archive-date=11 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240111004223/https://books.google.com/books?id=oJ-wJ49cNwAC&pg=PA126#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}][{{cite book|first=Samuel M.|last=Wilson|year=1990|title=Hispaniola: Caribbean Chiefdoms in the Age of Columbus|publisher=University of Alabama Press|page=110|isbn=978-0-8173-0462-1}}]
Taíno cultural artifacts include [[cave paintings]] in several locations in the country. These have become national symbols of Haiti and tourist attractions. Modern-day [[Léogâne]], started as a French colonial town in the southwest, is beside the former capital of the caciquedom of ''[[Xaraguá]].''[{{cite journal|url=http://www.millersville.edu/~columbus/data/ant/ROYAL-01.ANT|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216092556/http://www.millersville.edu/~columbus/data/ant/ROYAL-01.ANT|archive-date=16 February 2009|title=1492 and Multiculturalism|last=Royal|first=Robert|journal=The Intercollegiate Review|date=Spring 1992|volume=27|issue=2|pages=3–10}}]
According to the Puerto Rican historian [[Cayetano Coll y Toste]], the German explorer [[Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius]] was the first person to describe the [[Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean|Indigenous peoples]] of Haiti as "Taini" ([[Taino]]). The archaeologist [[L. Antonio Curet]] has written that Martius described these peoples as "Taini...perhaps by mistaking the qualifier for an ethnonym".[{{cite web |last=Curet |first=L. Antonio |date=2014 |title=The Taino: Phenomena, Concepts, and Terms |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270422726_The_Taino_Phenomena_Concepts_and_Terms |website=ResearchGate |location= |publisher=Ethnohistory |access-date=2026-04-27 |archive-date=28 April 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260428111009/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270422726_The_Taino_Phenomena_Concepts_and_Terms |url-status=live }}]
===Colonial era===
====Spanish rule (1492–1625)====
{{Main|Columbian Viceroyalty|New Spain|Captaincy General of Santo Domingo}}
[[File:Columbus landing on Hispaniola adj.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|right|[[Artist's impression]] of [[Christopher Columbus]] landing on [[Hispaniola]], engraving by [[Theodor de Bry]]]]
Navigator [[Christopher Columbus]] landed in Haiti on 6 December 1492, in an area that he named ''[[Môle-Saint-Nicolas]]'',[{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924097691590|title=Columbus the Discoverer|editor=Ober, Frederick Albion|page=[https://archive.org/details/cu31924097691590/page/n119 96]|year=1906|publisher=Harper & Brothers Publishers New York and London|access-date=2 December 2015}}] and claimed the island for the [[Crown of Castile]]. On 25 December his ship the ''[[Santa María (ship)|Santa María]]'' ran aground near the present site of [[Cap-Haïtien]]. Columbus left 39 men on the island, who founded the settlement of [[La Navidad]].[{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Haiti|title="Haiti"|access-date=5 September 2019|archive-date=15 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230915192813/https://www.britannica.com/place/Haiti|url-status=live}}] Relations with the native peoples were initially good; however the settlers were later killed by the Taíno.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 10.]
The sailors carried endemic Eurasian infectious diseases, causing epidemics that killed a large number of native people.[{{cite journal|url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/What-Became-of-the-Taino.html|title=What Became of the Taíno?|journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|date=October 2011|access-date=16 October 2013|archive-date=7 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207130050/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/What-Became-of-the-Taino.html|url-status=dead}}][{{cite book|last=Koplow|first=David A.|title=Smallpox: The Fight to Eradicate a Global Scourge|url=https://archive.org/details/smallpoxfighttoe00kopl|url-access=registration|year=2004|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0-520-24220-3}}] The first recorded [[History of smallpox|smallpox epidemic]] in the Americas erupted on Hispaniola in 1507.[{{cite web|url=http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/preparedness/bt_public_history_smallpox.shtm|title=History of Smallpox – Smallpox Through the Ages|publisher=Texas Department of State Health Services|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=24 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924141608/https://www.dshs.state.tx.us/preparedness/bt_public_history_smallpox.shtm|url-status=dead}}] Their numbers were further reduced by the harshness of the ''{{lang|es|[[encomienda]]}}'' system, in which the Spanish forced natives to work in gold mines and plantations.[{{cite book|last=Graves|first=Kerry A.|title=Haiti|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8b047XP92i4C&pg=PA22|date=2002|publisher=Capstone|isbn=978-0-7368-1078-4|page=22}}][{{cite web|url=http://faculty.smu.edu/bakewell/BAKEWELL/texts/burgoslaws.html|title=Laws of Burgos, 1512–1513|publisher=Faculty.smu.edu|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=6 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190606074822/http://faculty.smu.edu/bakewell/bakewell/texts/burgoslaws.html|url-status=dead}}] and gave legal framework to ''{{lang|es|encomiendas}}.'' The natives were brought to these sites to work in specific plantations or industries.[{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/186567/encomienda|title=Encomienda (Spanish policy)|encyclopedia=Britannica.com|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=7 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130807173447/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/186567/encomienda|url-status=live}}]
As the Spanish re-focused their colonization efforts on the greater riches of mainland Central and South America, Hispaniola became reduced largely to a trading and refueling post. As a result [[Piracy in the Caribbean|piracy became widespread]], encouraged by European powers hostile to Spain such as France (based on [[Tortuga (Haiti)|Île de la Tortue]]) and England.[Knight, Franklin, ''The Caribbean: The Genesis of a Fragmented Nationalism'', 3rd edn, p. 54, New York, Oxford University Press 1990.][{{Cite book|author=Ducoin, Jacques|title=Bertrand d'Ogeron, 1613–1676 : fondateur de la colonie de Saint-Domingue et gouverneur des flibustiers|year=2013|isbn=978-2-84833-294-9|publisher=Télégramme|location=Brest|oclc=849870919}}] In 1697 [[Kingdom of France|France]] and [[Spanish Empire|Spain]] settled their hostilities on the island by way of the [[Treaty of Ryswick]] of 1697, which divided Hispaniola between them.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 11.][{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/dominican-republic/3.htm|title=Dominican Republic – The first colony|access-date=19 June 2006|work=Country Studies|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]; [[Federal Research Division]]|archive-date=13 December 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213213711/http://countrystudies.us/dominican-republic/3.htm|url-status=live}}] The French set about creating sugar and coffee plantations, worked by vast numbers of those enslaved imported from Africa, and Saint-Domingue grew to become their richest colonial possession,[{{cite book|author1=Walter E. Kretchik|chapter=1. Haitian Culture and Military Power|date=2016|language=en|page=6|publisher=University of Nebraska Press|quote=the French colony’s seven thousand plantations to produce 40 percent of France’s foreign trade, nearly double the production of all British colonies combined|title=Eyewitness to Chaos: Personal Accounts of the Intervention in Haiti, 1994}}]
The French settlers were outnumbered by enslaved persons by almost 10 to 1.[{{Cite book|last=Coupeau|first=Steeve|title=The History of Haiti|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tA-XfYZFNvkC&pg=PA18|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2008|page=18|isbn=978-0-313-34089-5|access-date=7 January 2018|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033520/https://books.google.com/books?id=tA-XfYZFNvkC&pg=PA18|url-status=live}}] In the north of the island, those enslaved were able to retain many ties to African cultures, religion and language; these ties were continually being renewed by newly imported Africans. Some West Africans in slavery held on to their traditional [[Haitian Vodou|Vodou]] beliefs by secretly syncretizing it with Catholicism.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 12.] Saint-Domingue has been described as one of the most brutally efficient slave colonies; at the end of the 18th century it was supplying two-thirds of Europe's tropical produce while one-third of newly imported Africans died within a few years.[{{cite web|last=Farmer|first=Paul|title=Who removed Aristide?|access-date=19 February 2010|date=15 April 2004|url=http://www.lrb.co.uk/v26/n08/farm01_.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080608222428/http://www.lrb.co.uk/v26/n08/farm01_.html|archive-date=8 June 2008}}] Many enslaved persons died from diseases such as [[smallpox]] and [[typhoid fever]].[{{Cite book|last=Kiple|first=Kenneth F.|title=The Caribbean Slave: A Biological History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=veMLoyrX0BEC|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2002|page=145|isbn=978-0-521-52470-4|access-date=27 June 2015|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033520/https://books.google.com/books?id=veMLoyrX0BEC|url-status=live}}] They had low birth rates,[{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6K-DocgDY6gC&pg=PA119|title=Sugar Island Slavery in the Age of Enlightenment: The Political Economy of the Caribbean World|author-link1=Arthur Stinchcombe|last=Stinchcombe|first=Arthur L.|date=11 December 1995|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-2200-3|language=en|access-date=23 March 2018|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033520/https://books.google.com/books?id=6K-DocgDY6gC&pg=PA119#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}] and there is evidence that some women aborted fetuses rather than give birth to children within the bonds of slavery.[{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_z17AAAAMAAJ|title=Journal of Haitian Studies|date=2001|publisher=Haitian Studies Association|pages=67|language=en|access-date=23 March 2018|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033540/https://books.google.com/books?id=_z17AAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}] The colony's environment also suffered, as forests were cleared to make way for plantations and the land was overworked so as to extract maximum profit for French plantation owners.[{{cite web|url=http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/291/|title=Decree of the National Convention of 4 February 1794, Abolishing Slavery in all the Colonies|publisher=Chnm.gmu.edu|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603234817/http://chnm.gmu.edu/revolution/d/291/|archive-date=3 June 2011|url-status=dead}}]
The United States oscillated between supporting or not supporting Louverture and the emerging country of Haiti, depending on who was President of the US. [[George Washington]], who was a slave holder and isolationist, kept the United States neutral, although private US citizens at times provided aid to French [[Planter (plantation owner)|planters]] trying to put down the revolt. [[John Adams]], a vocal opponent of both slavery and Revolutionary France, fully supported the slave revolt by providing diplomatic recognition, financial support, munitions and warships (including the [[USS Constitution|USS ''Constitution'']]) beginning in 1798. This support ended in 1801 when [[Thomas Jefferson]], another [[Thomas Jefferson and slavery|slave-holding president]], took office and recalled the US Navy.[{{cite web|url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/HaitianRev|title=1784–1800 – The United States and the Haitian Revolution|publisher=History.state.gov|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130920081517/http://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/HaitianRev|archive-date=20 September 2013}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/22/books/poles-in-haiti.html|title=Poles in Haiti|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=22 March 1987|access-date=24 July 2013|last=Joseph|first=Raymond A.|author-link=Raymond Joseph|archive-date=14 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220914152856/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/22/books/poles-in-haiti.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/john-adams-supports-toussaint-louverture-horrifies-jefferson/|title=John Adams Supports Toussaint Louverture, Horrifies Jefferson|date=29 March 2017|access-date=25 November 2021|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921232453/https://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/john-adams-supports-toussaint-louverture-horrifies-jefferson/|url-status=live}}]
With slavery abolished, Louverture pledged allegiance to France, and he fought off the British and Spanish forces who had taken advantage of the situation and had invaded Saint-Domingue.[{{cite book|last1=Scheina|first1=Robert L.|title=Latin America's Wars: Volume 1|date=2003|publisher=Potomac Books}}][{{cite book|title=Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution|date=2009|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|page=182}}] The Spanish were later forced to cede their part of the island to France under the terms of the [[Peace of Basel]] in 1795, uniting the island under one government. However, an insurgency against French rule broke out in the east, and in the west there was fighting between Louverture's forces and the free people of color led by [[André Rigaud]] in the [[War of the Knives]] (1799–1800).[{{cite web|url=http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/revolution/revolution3.htm|title=The Haitian Revolution of 1791–1803|first=Bob|last=Corbett|publisher=Webster University|access-date=19 October 2013|archive-date=10 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910102328/http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/revolution/revolution3.htm|url-status=live}}][{{cite book|last=Smucker|first=Glenn R.|at=Toussaint Louverture|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/httoc.html|title=A Country Study: Haiti|editor=Richard A. Haggerty|publisher=Library of Congress Federal Research Division|date=December 1989|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-date=2 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502055615/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/httoc.html|url-status=live}}] The United States' support for the blacks in the war contributed to their victory over the mulattoes.[{{cite web|title=Haitian Revolution: A YPT Guide|url=https://www.youngpioneertours.com/haitian-revolution-ypt-guide/|website=Young Pioneer Tours|date=7 March 2020|access-date=3 July 2023|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703155758/https://www.youngpioneertours.com/haitian-revolution-ypt-guide/|url-status=live}}] More than 25,000 whites and free blacks left the island as refugees.[{{Cite web|author=|title=The History of the United States' First Refugee Crisis|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/history-united-states-first-refugee-crisis-180957717/|access-date=10 June 2022|website=Smithsonian Magazine|language=en|quote=In spite of all this paranoia, however, South Carolina actually lifted its ban on foreign slaves in 1804, and all those who arrived from Saint-Domingue eventually settled there. According to Dessens, many were even welcomed quite warmly. This was especially true for the 8,000 or so of the 25,000 refugees who shared both skin color and a common religion with their American counterparts.|archive-date=10 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610130041/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/history-united-states-first-refugee-crisis-180957717/|url-status=live}}]
[[File:Battle for Palm Tree Hill.jpg|thumb|Battle between [[Polish Legions (Napoleonic period)|Polish troops]] in French service and the [[Haitian Revolution|Haitian rebels]]. The majority of Polish soldiers eventually deserted the French army and fought alongside the Haitians.]]
After Louverture created a separatist constitution and proclaimed himself governor-general for life, [[Napoléon Bonaparte]] in 1802 [[Saint-Domingue expedition|sent an expedition]] of 20,000 soldiers and as many sailors[{{cite book|last=Frasier|first=Flora|title=Venus of Empire:The Life of Pauline Bonaparte|publisher=John Murray|date=2009}}] under the command of his brother-in-law [[Charles Leclerc (general, born 1772)|Charles Leclerc]] to reassert French control. The French achieved some victories, but within a few months most of their army had died from [[yellow fever]].[{{cite web|url=http://entomology.montana.edu/historybug/napoleon/yellow_fever_haiti.htm|title=The Haitian Debacle: Yellow Fever and the Fate of the French|publisher=Montana State University|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207060224/http://entomology.montana.edu/historybug/napoleon/yellow_fever_haiti.htm|archive-date=7 December 2013}}] Ultimately more than 50,000 French troops died in an attempt to retake the colony, including 18 generals.[{{cite news|author=Adam Hochschild|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/05/30/CMGKG6F3UV1.DTL|title=Birth of a Nation / Has the bloody 200-year history of Haiti doomed it to more violence?|work=San Francisco Chronicle|date=30 May 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=4 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304221956/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/05/30/CMGKG6F3UV1.DTL|url-status=dead}}] The French managed to capture Louverture, transporting him to France for trial. He was imprisoned at [[Fort de Joux]], where he died in 1803 of exposure and possibly [[tuberculosis]].[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 13.]
[[File:Revenge taken by the Black Army for the Cruelties practised on them by the French.png|thumb|Haitians hanging French soldiers]]
The enslaved persons, along with free {{Lang|fr|gens de couleur}} and allies, continued their fight for independence, led by generals [[Jean-Jacques Dessalines]], [[Alexandre Pétion]] and [[Henry Christophe]].[{{cite book|last1=Jackson|first1=Maurice|last2=Bacon|first2=Jacqueline|editor1-last=Jackson|editor1-first=Maurice|editor2-last=Bacon|editor2-first=Jacqueline|chapter=Fever and Fret: The Haitian Revolution and African American Responses|date=2010|title=African Americans and the Haitian Revolution: Selected Essays and Historical Documents|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dZDcAAAAQBAJ&q=African%20American%20and%20the%20Haitian%20Revolution&pg=PT14|access-date=10 October 2018|publisher=Routledge|quote=...the momentous struggle that began in 1791 and yielded the first post-colonial independent black nation and the only nation to gain independence through slave rebellion.|isbn=978-1-134-72613-4|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033521/https://books.google.com/books?id=dZDcAAAAQBAJ&q=African%20American%20and%20the%20Haitian%20Revolution&pg=PT14#v=snippet&q=African%20American%20and%20the%20Haitian%20Revolution&f=false|url-status=live}}] Under the overall command of Dessalines, the Haitian armies avoided open battle and instead conducted a successful [[Guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] campaign against the Napoleonic forces, working with diseases such as yellow fever to reduce the numbers of French soldiers.[C.L.R. James, ''Black Jacobins'' (London: Seckur & Warburg, 1938)] Later that year France withdrew its remaining 7,000 troops from the island, and Napoleon gave up his idea of re-establishing a North American empire, selling [[Louisiana (New France)]] to the United States in the [[Louisiana Purchase]].[{{cite book | last=Plassart | first=Anna | title=Chapter 9 Rewriting Scottish Enlightenment History: Haiti and the Boundaries of Progress | chapter=241Chapter 9 Rewriting Scottish Enlightenment History: Haiti and the Boundaries of Progress | publisher=De Gruyter Oldenbourg | date=2025-12-29 | chapter-url=https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111637181-010/html | access-date=2026-01-08 | pages=241–270 | doi=10.1515/9783111637181-010 | isbn=978-3-11-163695-5 | archive-date=9 January 2026 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260109085730/https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111637181-010/html | url-status=live }}]
Throughout the revolution, an estimated 20,000 French troops succumbed to yellow fever, while another 37,000 were killed in action,[{{cite web|title=The Haitian Revolution and the Louisiana Purchase|url=https://gazette.com/woodmenedition/jefferson-the-haitian-revolution-and-the-louisiana-purchase-get-out-of-town/article_e5b9a5de-88b2-11ea-9b22-1f1cf7020e1f.html|website=The Gazette|date=10 June 2021|access-date=3 July 2023|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703173841/https://gazette.com/woodmenedition/jefferson-the-haitian-revolution-and-the-louisiana-purchase-get-out-of-town/article_e5b9a5de-88b2-11ea-9b22-1f1cf7020e1f.amp.html|url-status=live}}] exceeding the total French soldiers killed in action across various 19th-century colonial campaigns in Algeria, Mexico, Indochina, Tunisia, and West Africa, which resulted in approximately 10,000 French soldiers killed in action combined.[{{cite book|title=Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492–2015, 4th ed.|isbn=9780786474707|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8urEDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA199|quote=French losses from 1830–51 were 3,336 killed in battle and 92,329 died of wounds or from all other causes. Between 1830 and 1870, 411 French officers were killed and 1,360 were wounded. The toll for the ranks was an estimated 10,000 killed and 35,000 wounded in all French colonial campaigns. A few thousand from this number died in Mexico or Indochina, but the great bulk met their deaths in Algeria. Disease took an even greater toll. One estimate puts total French and Foreign Legion deaths from battle and disease for the entire century at 110,000.|last1=Clodfelter|first1=Micheal|date=23 May 2017|publisher=McFarland|access-date=18 August 2023|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033542/https://books.google.com/books?id=8urEDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA199#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}] The British sustained 45,000 dead. Additionally, 200,000 Haitians died.[{{cite book|last1=Scheina|title=Latin America's Wars|publisher=Potomac Books|quote=some 350,000 persons died in the Haitian War for Independence (1791–1803): 200,000 blacks and affranchis (people of mixed blood), 75,000 French soldiers, 45,000 British soldiers, and 25,000 white colonists.}}] In the process, Dessalines became arguably the most successful military commander in the struggle against Napoleonic France.[Christer Petley, ''White Fury: A Jamaican Slaveholder and the Age of REvolution'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018), p. 182.]
===Independent Haiti===
====First Empire (1804–1806)====
{{main|First Empire of Haiti|1804 Haitian massacre}}
[[File:Le Serment des Ancêtres, 1823.jpg|thumb|Pétion and Dessalines swearing allegiance to each other before God; painting by [[Guillaume Guillon-Lethière|Guillon-Lethière]]]]
The independence of Saint-Domingue was proclaimed under the native name 'Haiti' by Dessalines on 1 January 1804 in [[Gonaïves]],[{{cite web|url=http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/earlyhaiti/dessalines.htm|title="A Brief History of Dessalines", 1825 Missionary Journal|publisher=Webster University|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051228150910/http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/earlyhaiti/dessalines.htm|archive-date=28 December 2005}}][Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 209.] and he was proclaimed "Emperor for Life" as Emperor Jacques I by his troops.[Constitution of Haiti [{{sic}}] ''New-York Evening Post'' 15 July 1805.] Dessalines at first offered protection to the white planters and others.[{{cite book|title=Monthly Magazine and British Register|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YVEoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA335|volume=XLVIII|year=1819|publisher=R. Phillips|page=335|access-date=27 June 2015|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628033521/https://books.google.com/books?id=YVEoAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA335#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}] However, once in power, he ordered the [[1804 Haitian massacre]] of nearly all the remaining whites; between January and April 1804, 3,000 to 5,000 whites were killed, including those who had been friendly and sympathetic to the black population.[{{cite book|last=Boyce Davies|first=Carole|title=Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora: Origins, Experiences, and Culture. A-C. Volume 1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mb6SDKfWftYC&pg=PA380|year=2008|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-700-5|page=380}}] Only [[1804 Haiti massacre#Aftermath|three categories of white people]] were selected out as exceptions and spared: [[Polish Haitians|Polish soldiers]], some of whom had deserted from the French army and fought alongside the Haitian rebels; a small group of [[German Haitians|German colonists]] invited to the north-west region; and a group of medical doctors and professionals.[{{cite book|last=Popkin|first=Jeremy D.|title=Facing Racial Revolution: Eyewitness Accounts of the Haitian Insurrection|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VSeLGtVm0iIC&pg=PA363|access-date=20 June 2017|date=15 February 2010|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-67585-5|pages=137}}] Reportedly, people with connections to officers in the Haitian army were also spared, as well as the women who agreed to marry non-white men.[{{cite book|last=Popkin|first=Jeremy D.|title=The Slaves Who Defeated Napoleon: Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian War of Independence, 1801–1804|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=03XSP22p3kgC|access-date=20 June 2017|date=11 February 2011|publisher=University of Alabama Press|isbn=978-0-8173-1732-4|pages=322}}]
Fearful of the potential impact the slave rebellion could have in the [[Slave states and free states|slave states]], U.S. President Jefferson refused to recognize the new republic. The Southern politicians who were a powerful voting bloc in the American Congress prevented U.S. recognition for decades until they withdrew in 1861 to form the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]].[{{Cite web|url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/haitian-rev|title=The United States and the Haitian Revolution, 1791–1804|website=history.state.gov|language=en|access-date=7 February 2017|archive-date=20 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210220133250/https://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/haitian-rev|url-status=live}}] The revolution led to a wave of emigration.[{{cite web|url=http://www.inmotionaame.org/migrations/topic.cfm;jsessionid=f8303469141230638453792?migration=5&topic=2&bhcp=1|title=From Saint-Domingue to Louisiana, The African-American Migration Experience|publisher=Inmotionaame.org|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225063309/http://www.inmotionaame.org/migrations/topic.cfm;jsessionid=f8303469141230638453792?migration=5&topic=2&bhcp=1|url-status=dead}}] In 1809, 9,000 refugees from Saint-Domingue, both white planters and people of color, settled ''en masse'' in [[New Orleans]], doubling the city's population,[{{cite web|url=http://ccet.louisiana.edu/tourism/cultural/The_People/haitian.html|title=Haitians|publisher=Center for Cultural & Eco-Tourism, University of Louisiana|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=25 July 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725115213/http://ccet.louisiana.edu/tourism/cultural/The_People/haitian.html|url-status=live}}] having been expelled from their initial refuge in Cuba by Spanish authorities.[{{cite web|url=http://www.thenation.com/article/congo-square-colonial-new-orleans?page=0,1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914132009/http://www.thenation.com/article/congo-square-colonial-new-orleans?page=0,1|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 September 2018|title=In Congo Square: Colonial New Orleans|publisher=Thenation.com|date=10 December 2008|access-date=24 July 2013}}]
The plantation system was re-established in Haiti, albeit for wages; however, many Haitians were marginalized and resented the heavy-handed manner in which this was enforced in the new nation's politics.[{{cite news|title=News about Haiti, including commentary and archival articles published in ''The New York Times''|url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/haiti/index.html|access-date=24 July 2015|first=Deborah|last=Sontag|work=[[The New York Times]]|archive-date=19 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160219053844/http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/haiti/index.html|url-status=live}}]{{Deep link needed|date=March 2023}}[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3lPaBA9nMZkC|title=Toussaint L'Ouverture: A Biography|last=Bell|first=Madison Smartt|publisher=New York: Pantheon, 2007 (Vintage Books, 2008)|isbn=978-1-4000-7935-3|date=10 June 2009}}][{{cite book|url=http://www.blackpast.org/gah/haitian-revolution-1791-1804|title=Haitian Revolution (1791–1804)|last=Sutherland|first=Claudia E.|date=16 July 2007|access-date=29 September 2014|archive-date=15 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215211607/https://blackpast.org/gah/haitian-revolution-1791-1804|url-status=live}}][{{cite journal|jstor=494418|title=Teaching the Haitian Revolution: Its Place in Western and Modern World History|journal=The History Teacher|volume=32|issue=1|pages=33–41|date=Nov 1998|last=Peguero|first=Valentina|doi=10.2307/494418|s2cid=141205471}}][{{cite journal|jstor=10.1086/526481|title=Preoccupied with Haiti: The Dream of Diaspora in African American Art, 1915–1942|journal=American Art|volume=21|issue=3|pages=74–97|date=Fall 2007|last=Thompson|first=Krista A|doi=10.1086/526481|s2cid=161805052}}] Pétion's republic was less absolutist, and he initiated a series of land reforms which benefited the peasant class.[{{cite book|title=Simón Bolívar: essays on the life and legacy of the liberator|editor1=Bushnell, David|editor2=Lester Langley|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2008|page=5|isbn=978-0-7425-5619-5}}] Meanwhile, the French, who had managed to maintain a precarious control of eastern Hispaniola, were [[Spanish reconquest of Santo Domingo|defeated by insurgents]] led by [[Juan Sánchez Ramírez]], with the area returning to Spanish rule in 1809 following the [[Battle of Palo Hincado]].[{{cite news|date=29 July 2010 |url=http://www.jmarcano.com/mipais/historia/batallas/phincado.html|title=La Reconquista: Batalla de Palo Hincado (La Reconquista: Battle of Palo Hincado) (In Spanish)|publisher=Mi país: Historia (My Country)|access-date=11 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630145140/http://www.jmarcano.com/mipais/historia/batallas/phincado.html|archive-date=30 June 2018|url-status=dead}}]
====Unification of Hispaniola (1821–1844)====
{{main|Republic of Haiti (1820–1849)|Haitian occupation of Santo Domingo}}
[[File:President Jean-Pierre Boyer of Haiti (Hispaniola Unification Regime) Portrait.jpg|thumb|Jean-Pierre Boyer (r. 1818–1843)]]
Beginning in 1821, President [[Jean-Pierre Boyer]], also an ''homme de couleur'' and successor to Pétion, reunified the island following the suicide of Christophe.[{{cite web|last=Sagás|first=Ernesto|title=An apparent contradiction? Popular perceptions of Haiti and the foreign policy of the Dominican Republic|publisher=Sixth Annual Conference of the Haitian Studies Association|date=14 October 1994|url=http://haitiforever.com/windowsonhaiti/esagas2.shtml|access-date=19 August 2007|archive-date=29 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929072156/http://haitiforever.com/windowsonhaiti/esagas2.shtml|url-status=live}}] After [[Republic of Spanish Haiti|Santo Domingo]] declared its independence from Spain on 30 November 1821, Boyer invaded, seeking to unite the entire island by force and to end slavery in Santo Domingo.[{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/168728/Dominican-Republic/129491/History|title=Dominican Republic – History|encyclopedia=Britannica.com|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=29 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929180917/https://www.britannica.com/place/Dominican-Republic|url-status=live}}] Struggling to revive the agricultural economy to produce commodity crops, Boyer passed the Code Rural, which denied peasant laborers the right to leave the land, enter the towns, or start farms or shops of their own, causing much resentment as most peasants wished to have their own farms rather than work on plantations.[{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/76479/Jean-Pierre-Boyer?anchor=ref126082|title=Jean-Pierre Boyer (President of Haiti)|encyclopedia=Britannica.com|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006131451/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/76479/Jean-Pierre-Boyer?anchor=ref126082|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.webster.edu/%7Ecorbetre/haiti/history/earlyhaiti/boyer.htm|title=1820 – 1843: The rule of Jean-Pierre Boyer|last=Corbett|first=Bob|publisher=Webster University|date=July 1995|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131221124022/http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/history/earlyhaiti/boyer.htm|archive-date=21 December 2013}}] Boyer's administration also reserved the highest posts in the administrative bureaucracy for Haitian mulattoes, contributing to resentment among Dominicans.[{{cite book | last=Matibag | first=Eugenio | title=Haitian-Dominican Counterpoint: Nation, State, and Race on Hispaniola | year=2003 | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan | page=98}}]
Starting in 1824, more than 6,000 [[African Americans]] migrated to Haiti, with transportation paid by an American philanthropic group similar in function to the [[American Colonization Society]] and its efforts in [[Liberia]].[{{cite web|url=http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti-archive/msg00868.html|title=Haiti And Its Diaspora: New Historical, Cultural And Economic Frontiers, reprint from ''US Gazette'' Philadelphia, 1824|last=Firire|first=Girard Alphonse|publisher=Webster.edu|date=27 August 1999|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130910113052/http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti-archive/msg00868.html|archive-date=10 September 2013}}][{{cite web
|last=Fouron
|first=Georges E.
|title=Haiti’s Painful Evolution from Promised Land to Migrant-Sending Nation
|url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/haiti-painful-evolution-promised-land-migrant-sending-nation
|publisher=Migration Policy Institute
|date=19 August 2020
|access-date=17 May 2026
|archive-date=19 April 2026
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260419065331/https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/haiti-painful-evolution-promised-land-migrant-sending-nation
|url-status=live
}}] Many found the conditions too harsh and returned to the United States.[{{Cite news |last=Nagourney |first=Eric |date=2022-05-20 |title=6 Takeaways About Haiti's Reparations to France |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/20/world/americas/takeaways-haiti-reparations-france.html |access-date=2025-05-06 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=7 May 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250507021719/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/20/world/americas/takeaways-haiti-reparations-france.html |url-status=live }}] By an order of 17 April 1826, the King of France renounced his rights of sovereignty and formally recognized the independence of Haiti.[{{cite web|title=La première ambassade française en Haïti|url=https://ht.ambafrance.org/La-premiere-ambassade-francaise-en-Haiti|website=Menu Contenu Plan du siteAmbassade de France à Port-au-Prince|publisher=Government of France|access-date=27 October 2017|language=fr|archive-date=8 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408154957/https://ht.ambafrance.org/La-premiere-ambassade-francaise-en-Haiti|url-status=live}}][M. Degros, Création des postes diplomatiques et consulaires, Revue d'histoire diplomatique, 1986; in French][J-F. Brière, Haïti et la France, 1804–1848 : le rêve brisé, Paris, Karthala 2008; in French] The enforced payments to France hampered Haiti's economic growth for years, exacerbated by the fact that many [[Western world|Western]] states continued to refuse formal diplomatic recognition to Haiti; Britain recognized Haitian independence in 1833, and the United States not until 1862.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jan/14/haiti-history-earthquake-disaster|title=Haiti: a long descent to hell|last=Henley|first=Jon|date=14 January 2010|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=15 October 2018|archive-date=15 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150715012830/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jan/14/haiti-history-earthquake-disaster|url-status=live}}][{{citation-attribution|1={{cite book|last=Léger|first=Jacques Nicolas|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|title=Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors|year=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors|pages=197–198|access-date=9 February 2018|archive-date=18 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218182403/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors|url-status=live}} }}] Pierrot's most pressing duty was to check the incursions of the Dominicans, who were harassing the Haitian troops.[{{cite book|last1=Bethell|first1=Leslie|title=The Cambridge History of Latin America |volume=3|url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory0000beth|url-access=registration|date=1984|publisher=Cambridge University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory0000beth/page/267 267–69]}}]
On 1 January 1846, Pierrot announced a fresh campaign to reimpose Haitian suzerainty over eastern Hispaniola, but his officers and men greeted this fresh summons with contempt.[{{citation-attribution|1={{cite book|last=Léger|first=Jacques Nicolas|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|title=Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors|year=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|url=http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors|pages=202–204|access-date=9 February 2018|archive-date=18 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221218182403/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors|url-status=live}}}}]
Emboldened by the sudden retreat of the Haitian army, the Dominicans counter-attacked; their flotilla went as far as [[Dame-Marie, Grand'Anse|Dame-Marie]] on the [[Tiburon Peninsula]], which they plundered and set on fire.[{{Cite web |title=Soulouque, Faustin Élie (1785–1867) {{!}} Encyclopedia.com |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/soulouque-faustin-elie-1785-1867 |access-date=2025-08-25 |website=www.encyclopedia.com |archive-date=28 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250828081110/https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/soulouque-faustin-elie-1785-1867 |url-status=live }}]
====Late 19th century–early 20th century====
[[File:Luders Affair, Germany, Haiti.jpg|thumb|German captain August Carl Thiele delivering the German ultimatum during the 1897 [[Lüders affair]]]]
The period following Soulouque's overthrow down to the turn of the century was a turbulent one for Haiti, with repeated bouts of political instability. Geffrard was overthrown in a coup in 1867,[{{cite book|first=Jan|last=Rogozinski|year=1999|title=A Brief History of the Caribbean|edition=Revised|publisher=Facts on File, Inc.|location=New York|isbn=0-8160-3811-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofca00rogo_0/page/220 220]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofca00rogo_0/page/220}}] as was his successor, [[Sylvain Salnave]], in 1869.[{{citation-attribution|1={{Cite book|chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors/Part_I:_Chapter_XVI|title=[[Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors]]|last=Léger|first=Jacques Nicolas|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|chapter=Chapter XVI|date=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|pages=211–216|access-date=8 September 2019|archive-date=9 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221109021148/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors/Part_I:_Chapter_XVI|url-status=live}} }}] Under the Presidency of [[Michel Domingue]] (1874–1876) relations with the Dominican Republic were dramatically improved by the signing of a treaty, in which both parties acknowledged the independence of the other. Some modernisation of the economy and infrastructure also occurred in this period, especially under the presidencies of [[Lysius Salomon]] (1879–1888) and [[Florvil Hyppolite]] (1889–1896).[''[[Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors]]'' by [[Jacques Nicolas Léger]], University of Michigan, 2006, 235–236]
Haiti's relations with outside powers were often strained. In 1889 the United States attempted to [[Môle Saint-Nicolas affair|force Haiti]] to permit the building of a naval base at [[Môle Saint-Nicolas]], which was firmly resisted by President Hyppolite.[{{citation-attribution|1={{Cite book|chapter-url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors/Part_I:_Chapter_XXII|title=[[Haiti: Her History and Her Detractors]]|last=Léger|first=Jacques Nicolas|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|chapter=Chapter XXII|date=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|location=New York; Washington|pages=245–247|access-date=8 September 2019|archive-date=12 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221112113317/https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Haiti:_Her_History_and_Her_Detractors/Part_I:_Chapter_XXII|url-status=live}} }}] In 1892 the German government supported suppression of the reform movement of [[Anténor Firmin]], and in 1897 the Germans used [[gunboat diplomacy]] to intimidate and then humiliate the Haitian government of President [[Tirésias Simon Sam]] (1896–1902) during the [[Lüders affair]].[{{cite book|author=Jacques Nicolas Léger|author-link=Jacques Nicolas Léger|title=Haiti, Her History and Her Detractors|url=https://archive.org/details/haitiherhistory00lggoog|year=1907|publisher=[[Neale Publishing Company]]|location=New York|page=[https://archive.org/details/haitiherhistory00lggoog/page/n271 249]}}]
In the first decades of the 20th century, Haiti experienced great political instability and was heavily in debt to France, Germany and the United States. A series of short lived presidencies came and went: [[Pierre Nord Alexis]] was forced from power in 1908,[[https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/12/08/104772140.pdf "Hurry Election Of Simon In Haiti; Followers Fear Delay May Cause Disorders And Invite Intervention From United States"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304034010/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/12/08/104772140.pdf |date=4 March 2021 }} ''New York Times'' 8 December 1908][[https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/12/18/105016384.pdf "Simon Elected President; Following Action by Haitian Congress, He Is Recognized By The United States"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309073618/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/12/18/105016384.pdf |date=9 March 2021 }}, ''The New York Times'' 18 December 1908] as was his successor [[François C. Antoine Simon]] in 1911;[{{cite news|title=Leconte in Haiti's Capital; Revolutionary Leader Takes Possession of National Palace|date=8 August 1911|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/08/08/104873360.pdf|work=The New York Times|pages=4|access-date=13 January 2010|archive-date=4 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304140706/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/08/08/104873360.pdf|url-status=live}}] [[Cincinnatus Leconte]] (1911–1912) was killed in a (possibly deliberate) explosion at the National Palace;[{{cite journal|last=Hayes|first=Carlton H.|author2=Edward M. Sait|date=December 1912|title=Record of Political Events|journal=Political Science Quarterly|volume=27|issue=4|pages=752|doi=10.2307/2141264|jstor=2141264}}] [[Michel Oreste]] (1913–1914) was ousted in a coup, as was his successor [[Oreste Zamor]] in 1914.[Kaplan, ''U.S. Imperialism in Latin America'', p. 61.]
====United States occupation (1915–1934)====
{{main|United States occupation of Haiti}}
{{see also|Slavery in Haiti#Unfree labor during US occupation}}
[[File:U.S. Marines and guide in search of bandits. Haiti, circa 1919., 1927 - 1981 - NARA - 532584 (cropped).tif|thumb|left|U.S. Marines and guide in search of Haitian [[Cacos (military group)|Cacos]] fighters against the [[United States occupation of Haiti|U.S. occupation of Haiti]], {{circa|1919}}]]
Germany increased its influence in Haiti in this period, with a small community of German settlers wielding disproportionate influence in Haiti's economy.[[https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/wwi/88275.htm Occupation of Haiti, 1915–34] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211223011822/https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/wwi/88275.htm |date=23 December 2021 }}, US Department of State][Office of the Historian, U.S. Government. [https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/haiti U.S. Invasion and Occupation of Haiti, 1915–34] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160104004131/https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/haiti |date=4 January 2016 }}]
In 1915, Haiti President [[Vilbrun Guillaume Sam]] sought to strengthen his tenuous rule by a mass execution of 167 political prisoners. Outrage at the killings led to riots, and Sam was captured and killed by a lynch mob.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 15.][{{Cite book|last=Millett|first=Allan Reed|title=Semper Fidelis: The History of the United States Marine Corps|page=185|publisher=Simon and Schuster|location=New York|date=1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sgkbAbwcLfAC|isbn=9780029215968|access-date=8 September 2019|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034129/https://books.google.com/books?id=sgkbAbwcLfAC|url-status=live}}] Fearing possible foreign intervention or the emergence of a government led by the anti-American Haitian politician [[Rosalvo Bobo]], President [[Woodrow Wilson]] sent U.S. Marines into Haiti in July 1915. The {{USS|Washington|ACR-11|6}}, under Rear Admiral [[William Banks Caperton|Caperton]], arrived in Port-au-Prince in an attempt to restore order and protect U.S. interests. Within days, the Marines had taken control of the capital city and its banks and customs house. The Marines declared martial law and severely censored the press. Within weeks, pro-U.S. Haitian President [[Philippe Sudré Dartiguenave]] was installed, and a new constitution was written that was favorable to the interests of the United States. The constitution (written by future US President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]) included a clause that allowed, for the first time, foreign ownership of land in Haiti, which was bitterly opposed by the Haitian legislature and citizenry.[{{cite book|last=Schmidt|first=Hans|title=The United States Occupation of Haiti, 1915–1934|publisher=[[Rutgers University Press]]|year=1971|isbn=9780813522036|page=99}}]
[[File:Corps de Charlemagne Péralte.jpg|thumb|right|175px|The body of caco leader Charlemagne Péralte on display after his execution by US forces; the image was counterproductive, with the resemblance to the [[Descent from the Cross|deposition of Jesus]] gaining Péralte the status of national martyr.]]
The occupation improved some of Haiti's infrastructure and centralized power in Port-au-Prince.[Danticat, Edwidge (28 July 2015), ''New Yorker Magazine''.][Henl, pp. 454–455.] Haitian traditionalists based in rural areas were highly resistant to U.S.-backed changes, while the urban elites, typically mixed-race, welcomed the growing economy but wanted more political control.[{{cite journal|url=https://historicalstudiesineducation.ca/index.php/edu_hse-rhe/article/view/2357|title=Education During the American Occupation of Haiti, 1915–1934|journal=Historical Studies in Education|volume=22|issue=2|pages=1–17|last=Angulo|first=A. J.|year=2010|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922014340/https://historicalstudiesineducation.ca/index.php/edu_hse-rhe/article/view/2357|url-status=live}}] The debts were still outstanding, though less due to increased prosperity, and the U.S. financial advisor-general receiver handled the budget until 1941.[{{cite journal|last=Munro|first=Dana G.|title=The American Withdrawal from Haiti, 1929–1934|journal=The Hispanic American Historical Review|volume=49|issue=1|pages=1–26|doi=10.2307/2511314|jstor=2511314|year=1969}}][{{cite book|last1=Renda|first1=Mary|title=Taking Haiti: Military Occupation and the Culture of U.S. Imperialism 1915–1940|url=https://archive.org/details/takinghaiti00mary|url-access=registration|date=2001|publisher=University of North Carolina Press|location=Chapel Hill and London|pages=[https://archive.org/details/takinghaiti00mary/page/15 15]}}] Armed opposition to the US presence was led by the [[Cacos (military group)|Cacos]] under the command of [[Charlemagne Péralte]]; his capture and execution in 1919 earned him the status of a national martyr.[{{cite magazine|title=An Iconic Image of Haitian Liberty|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/haiti-u-s-occupation-charlemagne-peralte|magazine=The New Yorker|date=28 July 2015|access-date=6 January 2017|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922012747/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/haiti-u-s-occupation-charlemagne-peralte|url-status=live}}][{{harvnb|Schmidt|1971|p=102}}] Haitian historians have claimed the true number was much higher, but this is not supported by most historians outside Haiti.[{{cite book|first=Paul|last=Farmer|author-link=Paul Farmer|title=The Uses of Haiti|publisher=Common Courage Press|year=2003|page=98}}]
====Post-occupation era (1934–1957)====
After U.S. forces left in 1934, Dominican dictator [[Rafael Trujillo]] used [[Anti-Haitian sentiment in the Dominican Republic|anti-Haitian sentiment]] as a nationalist tool. In 1937, in an event that became known as the [[Parsley massacre|Parsley Massacre]], he ordered his army to kill Haitians living on the Dominican side of the border.[{{cite book|first=Paul|last=Farmer|title=AIDS and Accusation: Haiti and the Geography of Blame|year=2006|publisher=California University Press|isbn=978-0-520-24839-7|pages=180–181}}][{{cite web|last=Wucker|first=Michele|title=Why the Cocks Fight: Dominicans, Haitians and the Struggle for Hispaniola|work=Windows on Haiti|url=http://www.ling.upenn.edu/courses/Fall_2003/ling001/wucker.html|access-date=26 December 2007|archive-date=31 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831131817/http://www.ling.upenn.edu/courses/Fall_2003/ling001/wucker.html|url-status=live}}] Few bullets were used; instead, 20,000–30,000 Haitians were bludgeoned and bayoneted, then herded into the sea, where sharks finished what Trujillo had begun.[{{cite book|title=Decision-making in the UN Security Council: The Case of Haiti, 1990–1997|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wadg8bm9_8oC&pg=PA198|isbn=978-0-19-829483-2|last1=Malone|first1=David|year=1998|publisher=Clarendon Press|access-date=8 February 2018|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034131/https://books.google.com/books?id=wadg8bm9_8oC&pg=PA198#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}] The indiscriminate massacre occurred over a period of five days and involved hundreds of Dominican troops.
Haitian President [[Sténio Vincent]], under US pressure owing to his increasingly dictatorial actions, resigned in 1941 and was replaced by [[Élie Lescot]].[{{Cite web|title=Antoine Louis Leocardie Elie Lescot|url=https://amhe.org/journal/?page_id=2268|access-date=24 May 2023|language=en-US|archive-date=24 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524094115/https://amhe.org/journal/?page_id=2268|url-status=live}}] In December 1941, during the [[Second World War]], Lescot declared war on Japan, Germany, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania.[Dr Erik Goldstein, Routledge, 2005, ''Wars and Peace Treaties: 1816 to 1991'', p. 217.] Out of these six [[Axis powers]], only Romania reciprocated.[Dr Erik Goldstein, Routledge, 2005, ''Wars and Peace Treaties: 1816 to 1991'', p. 218.] On 27 September 1945,[{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/unms/founders.shtml|title=Founding Member States|date=28 September 2009 |publisher=United Nations|access-date=28 June 2017|archive-date=21 November 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091121135646/https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/unms/founders.shtml|url-status=live}}] Haiti became a [[member states of the United Nations|founding member]] of the [[United Nations]] (the successor to the [[Member states of the League of Nations|League of Nations]], of which Haiti was also a founding member).[{{cite web|url=http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1thordinaryassemb.htm|title=League of Nations Photo Archive – First Assembly, Geneva, November 15- December 18, 1920|website=indiana.edu|access-date=22 June 2017|archive-date=6 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406025135/http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1thordinaryassemb.htm|url-status=dead}}][{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3RbzX4PjxtgC&pg=PA255|title=Historical Dictionary of Haiti|editor=Hall, Michael R.|page=255|year=2012|isbn=978-0-8108-7810-5|publisher=Scarecrow Press|access-date=22 June 2017|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034058/https://books.google.com/books?id=3RbzX4PjxtgC&pg=PA255#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}]
In 1946 Lescot was overthrown by the military, with [[Dumarsais Estimé]] becoming president.[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e6AyDQAAQBAJ|title=Haiti|editor=Clammer, Paul|page=16|year=2016|publisher=Bradt Travel Guides|isbn=9781841629230|access-date=9 September 2019|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034059/https://books.google.com/books?id=e6AyDQAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}] Firmly anti-Communist, he was supported by the United States; with greater political stability tourists started to visit Haiti.[{{cite news|title=Tourism can help Haiti return to its halcyon days|url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jul/26/haiti-tourism-caribbean-redevelopment|work=guardian.co.uk|access-date=26 July 2013|location=London|first=Prospery|last=Raymond|date=26 July 2013|archive-date=23 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923052338/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2013/jul/26/haiti-tourism-caribbean-redevelopment|url-status=live}}] The waterfront area of Port-au-Prince was redeveloped to allow cruise ship passengers to walk to cultural attractions.
====Duvalier dynasty (1957–1986)====
{{main|Duvalier dynasty}}
[[File:Duvalier crop2.jpg|thumb|upright|"Papa Doc" [[François Duvalier|Duvalier]] in 1968]]
In 1956–57 Haiti underwent severe political turmoil; Magloire was forced to resign and leave the country in 1956, and he was followed by four short-lived presidencies.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 17.] He advanced black interests in the public sector, where over time people of color had predominated as the educated urban elite.[{{cite book|last=Bryan|first=Patrick E.|title=The Haitian Revolution and Its Effects|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q9owdkOc0wgC|year=1984|publisher=Heinemann|isbn=978-0-435-98301-7|access-date=27 June 2015|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034059/https://books.google.com/books?id=q9owdkOc0wgC|url-status=live}}] Not trusting the army, despite his frequent purges of officers deemed disloyal, Duvalier created a private militia known as ''[[Tonton Macoute|Tontons Macoutes]]'' ("Bogeymen"), which maintained order by terrorizing the populace and political opponents.[{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/174718/François-Duvalier|title=François Duvalier|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica}}] In 1964 Duvalier proclaimed himself 'President for Life'; [[Jérémie Vespers|an uprising]] against his rule that year in [[Jérémie]] was violently suppressed, with the ringleaders publicly executed and hundreds of mixed-raced citizens in the town killed.[{{citation|mode=cs1|title=Biographies: François Duvalier (1907–1971)|last=Štraus|first=Stane|website=PolymerNotes.org|url=http://www.polymernotes.org/biographies/HTI_bio_duvalier.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711133408/http://www.polymernotes.org/biographies/HTI_bio_duvalier.htm|archive-date=11 July 2015|url-status=dead}}]
In 1971 Duvalier died, and he was succeeded by his son [[Jean-Claude Duvalier]], nicknamed 'Baby Doc', who ruled until 1986.[{{cite book|last=Shaw|first=Karl|title=Power Mad!|trans-title=Šílenství mocných|year=2005|orig-year=2004|publisher=Metafora|location=Praha|language=cs|isbn=978-80-7359-002-4|page=52}}][{{cite news|url=https://huffingtonpost.com/paul-clammer/haiti-caribbean-destination_b_2593487.html|title=Is Haiti The Caribbean's Best New Destination?|last=Clammer|first=Paul|date=1 February 2014|access-date=3 November 2014|work=The Huffington Post|archive-date=3 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103094114/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-clammer/haiti-caribbean-destination_b_2593487.html|url-status=live}}] However, as the economy continued to decline, Baby Doc's grip on power began to weaken. Haiti's pig population was slaughtered following an outbreak of swine fever in the late 1970s, causing hardship to rural communities who used them as an investment.[{{Cite journal|last=Abrams|first=Elliott|date=November 2014|title=Getting Rid of Baby Doc|url=https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/getting-rid-of-baby-doc/|journal=Commentary|volume=138|pages=27–30|issn=0010-2601|access-date=9 September 2019|archive-date=11 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180811200020/https://www.commentarymagazine.com/articles/getting-rid-of-baby-doc/|url-status=dead}}] The opposition became more vocal, bolstered by a visit to the country by [[Pope John Paul II]] in 1983, who publicly lambasted the president.[{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6tkvAAAAIBAJ&pg=7222,4661909|title='Things in Haiti must change,' pope tells Duvalier|page=15|newspaper=The Spokesman-Review|date=10 March 1983|issn=1064-7317|location=Spokane, Washington|agency=Associated Press|quote=The Roman Catholic pontiff responded with a stern lecture to the island country's tiny moneyed elite, telling the 31-year-old president-for-life of the Western Hemisphere's poorest country, 'Things must change in Haiti.' ... 'I call on all those who have power, riches and culture so that they can understand the serious and urgent responsibility to help their brothers and sisters,' {{bracket|[[Pope John Paul II]]}} said.|access-date=9 September 2019|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920163105/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=6tkvAAAAIBAJ&pg=7222,4661909|url-status=live}}] Demonstrations occurred in Gonaïves in 1985 which then spread across the country; under pressure from the United States, Duvalier left the country in February 1986.[{{cite book |last=Trouillot |first=Michel-Rolph |date=1990 |title=Haiti, State Against Nation: The Origins and Legacy of Duvalierism |location=New York |publisher=Monthly Review Press |page=221 |isbn=0853457557 }}] In total, roughly 40,000 to 60,000 Haitians are estimated to have been killed during the reign of the Duvaliers.[{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/28/AR2011012803142.html|title='Baby Doc' Duvalier missed Haiti. That's why he came back|newspaper=The Washington Post|first=Marjorie|last=Valbrun|date=28 January 2011|access-date=29 December 2017|archive-date=20 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720062039/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/28/AR2011012803142.html|url-status=live}}] Through the use of his intimidation tactics and executions, many intellectual Haitians had fled, leaving the country with a massive brain-drain from which it has yet to recover.[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l8Nrdxzi-lkC|title=Farewell, Fred Voodoo: A Letter from Haiti|editor=Wilentz, Amy|page=13|year=2013|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=9781451643978|access-date=24 May 2020}}]
====Post-Duvalier era (1986–2004)====
[[File:DD-SD-99-03743.jpg|thumb|[[Jean-Bertrand Aristide]] returns to Haiti following the [[Operation Uphold Democracy|U.S.-led invasion]] in 1994 designed to remove the [[Raoul Cédras|regime]] installed by the [[1991 Haitian coup d'état]]]]
Following Duvalier's departure, army leader General [[Henri Namphy]] headed the [[National Council of Government (Haiti)|National Governing Council]].[{{cite journal |last=Whitney |first=Kathleen Marie |date=1996 |title=Sin, Fraph, and the CIA: U.S. Covert Action in Haiti |journal=Southwestern Journal of Law and Trade in the Americas |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=303–332}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.cartercenter.org/news/documents/doc1379.html|title=Haiti's Election Needs Help|date=30 September 1990|first=Jimmy|last=Carter|author-link=Jimmy Carter|publisher=Carter Center|access-date=10 September 2019|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920173852/http://www.cartercenter.org/news/documents/doc1379.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite report |publisher=[[Inter-American Commission on Human Rights]] |url=http://www.iachr.org/countryrep/Haiti88eng/chap.2e.htm |title=Report on the Situation of Human Tights in Haiti |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728093219/http://www.iachr.org/countryrep/Haiti88eng/chap.2e.htm |archive-date=28 July 2020 |number=OEA/Ser.L/V/II.74 doc. 9 rev. 1 |date=7 September 1988}}]
Another [[September 1988 Haitian coup d'état|coup followed]] in September 1988, after the [[St. Jean Bosco massacre]] in which approximately 13 to 50 people were killed while attending a mass led by prominent government critic and Catholic priest [[Jean-Bertrand Aristide]].[{{cite book |author1=Americas Watch Committee (U.S.) |author2=National Coalition for Haitian Refugees, Caribbean Rights (Organization) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YRQPgQr_x04C&q=bosco |title=The More Things Change...: Human Rights in Haiti |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034101/https://books.google.com/books?id=YRQPgQr_x04C&q=bosco#v=snippet&q=bosco&f=false |archive-date=28 June 2024 |publisher=[[Human Rights Watch]] |date=1989 |pages=96–8 |isbn=0-929692-14-4}}] General [[Prosper Avril]] subsequently led a military regime until March 1990.[{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/15/news/ex-ruler-of-haiti-faces-human-rights-suit-in-us.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180206104600/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/15/news/ex-ruler-of-haiti-faces-human-rights-suit-in-us.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 February 2018|title=Ex-Ruler of Haiti Faces Human Rights Suit in U.S.|last=Rohter |first=Larry|date=15 November 1991|work=The New York Times|access-date=10 September 2019}}][{{cite book |first1=Anthony |last1=Payne |first2=Paul K. |last2=Sutton |date=1993 |title=Modern Caribbean politics |publisher=JHU Press |page=90}}] Avril transferred power to the army chief of staff General [[Hérard Abraham]] on 10 March. Abraham gave up power three days later, becoming the only military leader in Haiti during the 20th century to voluntarily give up power. Abraham later helped to secure the [[1990–91 Haitian general election]],[{{cite report |title=The 1990 General Elections in Haiti |publisher=National Democratic Institute for International Affairs |date=1991 |url=https://www.cartercenter.org/documents/electionreports/democracy/finalreporthaiti1990.pdf |page=4 |isbn=1-880134-08-X |archive-date=20 June 2025 |access-date=6 May 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250620213014/https://www.cartercenter.org/documents/electionreports/democracy/FinalReportHaiti1990.pdf |url-status=live }}] in which Aristide was elected president. However, his ambitious reformist agenda worried the elites, and in September 1991 he was overthrown by the military, led by [[Raoul Cédras]], in the [[1991 Haitian coup d'état]].[{{cite journal |last1=Collins |first1=Edward Jr. |last2=Cole |first2=Timothy M. |date=1996 |title=Regime Legitimation in Instances of Coup-Caused Governments-in-Exile: The Cases of Presidents Makarios and Aristide |journal=Journal of International Law & Practice |volume=5 |issue=2 |page=220}}] Amidst the continuing turmoil many Haitians attempted to flee the country.[{{cite web|publisher=The Carter Center|title=Activities by Country: Haiti|url=http://www.cartercenter.org/countries/haiti.html|access-date=19 February 2010|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920173124/http://www.cartercenter.org/countries/haiti.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|last=Manegol|first=Catherine S.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/16/world/mission-haiti-scene-for-aristide-s-followers-every-step-dance-every-cheer-song.html|title=For Aristide's Followers, Every Step Is a Dance, Every Cheer a Song|work=The New York Times|date=16 October 1994|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922090800/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/10/16/world/mission-haiti-scene-for-aristide-s-followers-every-step-dance-every-cheer-song.html|url-status=live}}] As part of the deal Aristide had to implement free market reforms in an attempt to improve the Haitian economy, with mixed results.[{{cite book|last=Bell|first=Beverly|date=2013|title=Fault Lines: Views across Haiti's Divide|location=Ithaca, NY|publisher=Cornell University Press|pages=30–38|isbn=978-0-8014-7769-0}}][{{cite web|title=Hurricane Gordon 1994|publisher=Hurricane Central|url=http://hurricanecentral.freeservers.com/Prelim_Reports/1994_Gordon.htm|access-date=4 October 2016|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922111011/http://hurricanecentral.freeservers.com/Prelim_Reports/1994_Gordon.htm|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|title=Hurricane Gordon 1994|publisher=NOAA|url=http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/gordon94.html|access-date=4 October 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161007062220/http://www.publicaffairs.noaa.gov/gordon94.html|archive-date=7 October 2016}}]
The [[1995 Haitian general election|1995 general election]] was won by [[René Préval]], gaining 88% of the popular vote, albeit on a low turnout.[{{cite web |url=http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/2137_95.htm |title=Haiti: Elections held in 1995 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305135914/http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/arc/2137_95.htm |archive-date=5 March 2016 |publisher=Inter-Parliamentary Union}}][{{cite book |author-link=Dieter Nohlen |last=Nohlen |first=D. |date=2005 |title=Elections in the Americas: A data handbook |volume=I |page=392 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-928357-6}}][{{cite book|last=Hallward|first=P.|title=Damming the Flood:Haiti, Aristide, and the Politics of containment|location=London, UK|publisher=Verso Books|year=2007|pages=xiii, 78–79}}] The election had been boycotted by the opposition, then organized into the [[Convergence Démocratique]], over a dispute in the [[2000 Haitian parliamentary election|May legislative elections]]. In subsequent years, there was increasing violence between rival political factions and [[human rights abuse]]s.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 19.][{{cite book |last1=Buss |first1=Terry F. |last2=Gardner |first2=Adam |title=Haiti in the Balance: Why Foreign Aid Has Failed and What We Can Do about It |url=https://archive.org/details/haitiinbalancewh00buss |url-access=registration |date=2009 |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |isbn=978-0-8157-0164-4}}] Aristide spent years negotiating with the Convergence Démocratique on new elections, but the Convergence's inability to develop a sufficient electoral base made elections unattractive.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}
In 2004, [[2004 Haitian coup d'état|an anti-Aristide revolt began]] in northern Haiti. The rebellion eventually reached the capital, and Aristide was forced into exile.[{{cite web|url=http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/186/34344.html|title=Aristide Kidnapped by US Forces?|publisher=Globalpolicy.org|date=1 March 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=7 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807130449/https://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/186/34344.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.democracynow.org/2004/3/16/exclusive_aristide_and_his_bodyguard_describe|title=Exclusive: Aristide and His Bodyguard Describe the U.S. Role In His Ouster|publisher=[[Democracy Now!|Democracynow.org]]|date=16 March 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922093612/https://www.democracynow.org/2004/3/16/exclusive_aristide_and_his_bodyguard_describe|url-status=live}}] These charges were denied by the US government.[{{cite news|last=Buschschluter|first=Vanessa|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8460185.stm|title=The long history of troubled ties between Haiti and the US|work=BBC News|date=16 January 2010|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=1 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901044512/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8460185.stm|url-status=live}}][Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 20.] However, MINUSTAH proved controversial, since their periodically heavy-handed approach to maintaining law and order and several instances of abuses, including the alleged sexual abuse of civilians, provoked resentment and distrust among Haitians.[{{cite news|last=Varner|first=Bill|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=az0cdhHzic3M|title=Haitian Gangs Seek Truce That Would Ease Elections|publisher=Bloomberg.com|date=25 August 2005|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=16 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916205622/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|last=Klarreich|first=Kathie|title=Will the United Nations' legacy in Haiti be all about scandal?|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2012/0613/Will-the-United-Nations-legacy-in-Haiti-be-all-about-scandal|newspaper=The Christian Science Monitor|access-date=10 September 2013|date=13 June 2012|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921235743/https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2012/0613/Will-the-United-Nations-legacy-in-Haiti-be-all-about-scandal|url-status=live}}][{{Cite web |date=2024-05-22 |title='Unwilling to Stop': What it Takes to Be a Local Reporter in Haiti |url=https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/unwilling-stop-global-press-journalists-haiti-keep-seeking-stories-matter/ |access-date=2025-05-06 |website=Global Press Journal |language=en-US |archive-date=18 March 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250318025626/https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/unwilling-stop-global-press-journalists-haiti-keep-seeking-stories-matter/ |url-status=live }}][{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/10/international/10haiti.html|last=Thompson|first=Ginger|title=Candidate of Haiti's Poor Leads in Early Tally With 61% of Vote.|work=The New York Times|date=10 February 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140424203107/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/10/international/10haiti.html|archive-date=24 April 2014|url-status=live}}]
====Post-Aristide era (2004–present)====
{{See also|Haitian conflict|Haitian crisis (2018–present)}}
Amidst the continuing political chaos, a series of natural disasters hit Haiti. In 2004, [[Hurricane Jeanne#Haiti|Tropical Storm Jeanne]] skimmed the north coast, leaving 3,006 people dead in flooding and mudslides, mostly in Gonaïves.[{{cite web|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sfl-0923haitigallery,0,7266223.photogallery|title=Photo Gallery: Jeanne hits Haiti|work=Orlando Sentinel|access-date=16 February 2010|archive-date=5 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090505105859/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sfl-0923haitigallery,0,7266223.photogallery|url-status=dead}}] In 2008, Haiti was again struck by tropical storms; [[Tropical Storm Fay (2008)|Tropical Storm Fay]], [[Hurricane Gustav]], [[Hurricane Hanna (2008)|Hurricane Hanna]] and [[Hurricane Ike]] all produced heavy winds and rain, resulting in 331 deaths and about 800,000 in need of humanitarian aid.[{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-09-10-Haiti-floods_N.htm|title=UN seeks almost US$108 million for Haiti floods|work=[[USA Today]]|date=10 September 2008|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=15 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015233344/http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-09-10-Haiti-floods_N.htm|url-status=live}}] The state of affairs produced by these storms was intensified by already high food and fuel prices that had caused a food crisis and political unrest in April 2008.[{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4718790.stm|work=BBC News|title=Preval declared Haiti poll winner|date=16 February 2006|access-date=4 May 2010|archive-date=25 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925052428/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4718790.stm|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN1228245020080413|title=Haiti's government falls after food riots|date=12 April 2008|access-date=16 February 2010|work=Reuters|archive-date=20 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920172406/https://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN1228245020080413|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010rja6/|title=Magnitude 7.0 – Haiti Region|access-date=12 January 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115110510/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010rja6/|archive-date=15 January 2010}}] The earthquake was reported to have left between 160,000 and 316,000 people dead and up to 1.6 million homeless, making it one of the [[List of natural disasters by death toll|deadliest natural disasters ever recorded]].[{{cite web|title=Haiti Earthquake Fast Facts|url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/12/12/world/haiti-earthquake-fast-facts/index.html|website=CNN|date=12 December 2013|access-date=12 January 2018|archive-date=25 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925001717/https://www.cnn.com/2013/12/12/world/haiti-earthquake-fast-facts/index.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|last=Archibold|first=Randal C.|date=13 January 2011|title=Haiti: Quake's Toll Rises to 316,000|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/world/americas/14briefs-Haiti.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/world/americas/14briefs-Haiti.html|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|access-date=18 March 2012}}{{cbignore}}][{{cite journal|url=https://ourworldindata.org/the-worlds-deadliest-earthquakes|title=What were the world's deadliest earthquakes?|journal=Our World in Data|date=2 February 2024|last1=Ritchie|first1=Hannah|author1-link=Hannah Ritchie|last2=Roser|first2=Max|author2-link=Max Roser|access-date=10 April 2023|archive-date=10 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410172355/https://ourworldindata.org/the-worlds-deadliest-earthquakes|url-status=live}}] An estimated 80% of schools and more than half of Haiti's hospitals were destroyed or damaged.[{{cite news|last1=Sontag|first1=Deborah|title=In Haiti, Global Failures on a Cholera Epidemic|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/01/world/americas/haitis-cholera-outraced-the-experts-and-tainted-the-un.|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/01/world/americas/haitis-cholera-outraced-the-experts-and-tainted-the-un.|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|access-date=21 June 2015}}{{cbignore}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressrelease/2011-01-06/year-indecision-leaves-haiti-recovery-standstill|title=A year of indecision leaves Haiti recovery at a standstill|publisher=Oxfam.org|date=6 January 2011|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=2 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102155112/http://www.oxfam.org/en/pressroom/pressrelease/2011-01-06/year-indecision-leaves-haiti-recovery-standstill|url-status=live}}] In 2017, it was reported that roughly 10,000 Haitians had died and nearly a million had been made ill. After years of denial, the United Nations apologized in 2016, but {{as of|2017|lc=y}}, they have refused to acknowledge fault, thus avoiding financial responsibility.[{{cite news|last1=Gladstone|first1=Rick|title=U.N. Brought Cholera to Haiti. Now It Is Fumbling Its Effort to Atone|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/26/world/americas/cholera-haiti-united-nations-peacekeepers-yemen.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/26/world/americas/cholera-haiti-united-nations-peacekeepers-yemen.html|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|newspaper=The New York Times|date=27 June 2017|access-date=12 January 2018}}{{cbignore}}]
[[File:Mud cookies.jpg|thumb|Haitian [[mud cookie]]s drying in the sun, 2010]]
General elections had been planned for January 2010, but were postponed due to the earthquake.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 21.][{{cite web|url=http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-2951-haiti-inauguration-michel-martelly-56th-president-of-haiti.html|title=Haiti – Inauguration : Michel Martelly, 56th President of Haiti|publisher=Haitilibre.com|date=14 May 2011|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922004322/https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-2951-haiti-inauguration-michel-martelly-56th-president-of-haiti.html|url-status=live}}] In 2011, both former presidents Jean-Claude Duvalier and Jean-Bertrand Aristide returned to Haiti; attempts to try Duvalier for crimes committed under his rule were shelved following his death in 2014.[{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/world/americas/20haiti.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/world/americas/20haiti.html|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|work=[[The New York Times]]|first=Ginger |last=Thompson|title=Aristide Says He Is Ready to Follow Duvalier Back to Haiti|date=19 January 2011}}{{cbignore}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/04/jean-claude-duvalier-baby-doc-haiti-dies|title=Jean-Claude Duvalier, former Haitian dictator, dies aged 63|newspaper=The Guardian|author=|date=4 October 2014|access-date=17 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208082446/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/04/jean-claude-duvalier-baby-doc-haiti-dies|archive-date=8 December 2015|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|first=Jacob|last=Kushner|url=http://www.salon.com/2011/01/17/cb_haiti_ex_dictator_returns/|title=Haiti's 'Baby Doc' in surprise return from exile|work=Salon|agency=Associated Press|date=17 January 2011|archive-date=27 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527224344/http://www.salon.com/2011/01/17/cb_haiti_ex_dictator_returns/|url-status=live}}][{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SofDAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT14|chapter=Formulating the Case for Reparations|last=Gifford|first=Anthony|title=Colonialism, Slavery, Reparations and Trade: Remedying The 'Past'?|publisher=Routledge |editor-last1=Brennan |editor-first1=Fernme |editor-last2=Packer |editor-first2=John |year=2012|pages=96|isbn=978-1-136-59792-3|access-date=25 February 2018|archive-date=28 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628034613/https://books.google.com/books?id=SofDAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT14#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/news/americas/21587236-pressure-grows-compensation-caribbean-trade-blood-money|title=Slavery reparations: Blood money|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|date=5 October 2013|access-date=29 August 2017|archive-date=4 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204120133/https://www.economist.com/news/americas/21587236-pressure-grows-compensation-caribbean-trade-blood-money|url-status=live}}] Meanwhile, after continuing political wrangling with the opposition and allegations of electoral fraud, Martelly agreed to step down in 2016 without a successor in place.[{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/08/world/americas/michel-martelly-haitis-president-departs-without-a-successor.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/08/world/americas/michel-martelly-haitis-president-departs-without-a-successor.html|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|title=Michel Martelly, Haiti's President, Departs Without a Successor|date=7 February 2016|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=7 February 2016|last=Robles|first=Frances}}{{cbignore}}] After numerous postponements, partly owing to the effects of devastating [[Hurricane Matthew]], elections were held [[November 2016 Haitian presidential election|in November 2016]] with a record low voter turnout of just 17%.[{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-haiti-election-idUSKCN0XM0CC|title=Haiti says election could drag on for months, protests grow|work=Reuters|date=25 April 2016|access-date=26 April 2016|last=Guyler Delva|first=Joseph|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921213143/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-haiti-election-idUSKCN0XM0CC|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18834-haiti-flash-the-elections-of-october-9-postponed.html|title=Haiti – FLASH : The elections of October 9 postponed|work=Haiti Libre|date=5 October 2016|access-date=6 October 2016|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922005549/https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-18834-haiti-flash-the-elections-of-october-9-postponed.html|url-status=live}}] The victor, [[Jovenel Moïse]] of the [[Haitian Tèt Kale Party]], was sworn in as president in 2017.[{{cite tweet|user=cep_haiti|number=803456135873363968|date=28 November 2016|title=Résultats préliminaires des élections présidentielles du 20 Novembre 2016 pic.twitter.com/i9GsrkkU8p}}][{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-haiti-elecion-idUKKBN13O08L|title=Businessman Moise wins Haiti election in first round – provisional results|work=Reuters|date=29 November 2016|access-date=16 November 2017|location=Port-au-Prince|first=Makini|last=Brice|archive-date=7 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807204157/https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-haiti-elecion-idUKKBN13O08L|url-status=dead}}]
Protests began on 7 July 2018 in response to increased fuel prices. Over time, these protests evolved into demands for the resignation of president Moïse.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.dw.com/en/haiti-thousands-protest-against-corruption/a-47421473|title=Haiti: Thousands protest against corruption|date=8 February 2019|website=[[Deutsche Welle]]|language=en-GB|access-date=19 November 2019|archive-date=9 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909030932/https://www.dw.com/en/haiti-thousands-protest-against-corruption/a-47421473|url-status=live}}] On 7 July 2021, [[Assassination of Jovenel Moïse|Moïse was assassinated]] in an attack on his private residence, and First Lady [[Martine Moïse]] was hospitalized in [[Miami]].[{{Cite web|date=7 July 2021|title=Official: Haiti President Jovenel Moïse assassinated at home|url=https://apnews.com/article/caribbean-haiti-government-and-politics-b56a0f8fec0832028bdc51e8d59c6af2|access-date=7 July 2021|website=AP NEWS|language=en|archive-date=22 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922050149/https://apnews.com/article/caribbean-haiti-government-and-politics-b56a0f8fec0832028bdc51e8d59c6af2|url-status=live}}] Amid the political crisis, the government of Haiti installed [[Ariel Henry]] as the acting prime minister on 20 July.[{{cite web|title=Haiti – Background|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|website=The World Factbook|date=15 June 2022|publisher=CIA|access-date=16 June 2022|archive-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209014627/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead}}][{{Cite web|first1=Caitlin|last1=Hu|first2=Natalie|last2=Gallón|first3=Matt|last3=Rivers|first4=Etant|last4=Dupain|title=Haiti's acting prime minister Claude Joseph to step down amid power struggle after president's assassination|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/19/americas/haiti-acting-pm-claude-joseph-to-step-down-intl/index.html|date=19 July 2021|access-date=19 July 2021|website=CNN|archive-date=19 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210719150004/https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/19/americas/haiti-acting-pm-claude-joseph-to-step-down-intl/index.html|url-status=live}}] On 14 August, Haiti suffered [[2021 Haiti earthquake|another huge earthquake]], with many casualties.[{{Cite news|date=14 August 2021|title=Haiti struck by deadly 7.2-magnitude earthquake|language=en-GB|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-58215631|access-date=15 August 2021|archive-date=14 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814141827/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-58215631|url-status=live}}] The earthquake also damaged Haiti's economic conditions and led to a rise in gang violence which by September 2021 had escalated to a long-lasting full-blown gang war and other violent crimes within the country.[{{cite web|url=https://blogs.iadb.org/ideas-matter/en/estimating-the-potential-economic-impact-of-haitis-2021-earthquake/|title=Estimating the Potential Economic Impact of Haiti's 2021 Earthquake|first1=Eduardo|last1=Cavallo|first2=Laura |last2=Giles Álvarez|first3=Andrew |last3=Powell|website=IDB|date=28 September 2021|access-date=18 January 2022|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921215202/https://blogs.iadb.org/ideas-matter/en/estimating-the-potential-economic-impact-of-haitis-2021-earthquake/|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/10/1102062|title=Haiti facing stalled elections, kidnapping surge, rampant insecurity|website=UN News|publisher=United Nations|date=4 October 2021|access-date=18 January 2022|archive-date=21 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220921210751/https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/10/1102062|url-status=live}}] As of March 2022, Haiti still has no president, no parliamentary quorum, and a dysfunctional high court due to a lack of judges.[{{cite news|title=Haiti suffers deadly demonstrations against rise in fuel prices|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2022/09/17/haiti-suffers-deadly-demonstrations-against-rise-in-fuel-prices_5997305_4.html|work=Le Monde|date=17 September 2022|access-date=8 October 2022|archive-date=8 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221008194256/https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2022/09/17/haiti-suffers-deadly-demonstrations-against-rise-in-fuel-prices_5997305_4.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite news|title=Haiti reaches a breaking point as the economy tanks and violence soars|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/haiti-reaches-a-breaking-point-as-the-economy-tanks-and-violence-soars|work=PBS|date=4 October 2022|access-date=8 October 2022|archive-date=8 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221008194256/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/haiti-reaches-a-breaking-point-as-the-economy-tanks-and-violence-soars|url-status=live}}]
By late 2023, gangs and armed groups controlled an estimated 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince.[{{cite report |url=https://crisisresponse.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl1481/files/appeal/pdf/2024_Haiti_Crisis_Response_Plan_20222024.pdf |title=Haiti Crisis Response Plan 2022–2024 |publisher=IOM UN Migration |date=15 March 2024 |access-date=15 May 2025 |archive-date=16 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250716104505/https://crisisresponse.iom.int/sites/g/files/tmzbdl1481/files/appeal/pdf/2024_Haiti_Crisis_Response_Plan_20222024.pdf |url-status=live }}] Doctors, lawyers, and other wealthy members of society were kidnapped and held for ransom.[{{cite news|last=Wilentz|first=Amy|title=Haiti, April 2023: Soon There Will Be No One Left to Kidnap|url=https://www.thenation.com/article/world/haiti-gangs-ariel-henry-biden/|access-date=26 April 2023|agency=The Nation|date=17 April 2023|archive-date=26 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230426135431/https://www.thenation.com/article/world/haiti-gangs-ariel-henry-biden/|url-status=live}}] Many victims were killed when ransom demands were not met, leading those with the means to do so to flee the country, further hampering efforts to pull the country out of the crisis.[{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/17/world/americas/haiti-gang-violence-health.html|title=Haiti's Hospitals Survived Cholera and Covid. Gangs Are Closing Them.|first1=David C.|last1=Adams|first2=Frances|last2=Robles|work=The New York Times|date=2024-03-17|access-date=19 March 2024|archive-date=17 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317162256/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/17/world/americas/haiti-gang-violence-health.html|url-status=live}}]
In March 2024, Ariel Henry was prevented by gangs from returning to Haiti, following a visit to [[Kenya]].[{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/haiti-prime-minister-gangs-resign-e583a191a2f800bc63752220a47dec0d|title=Haiti's prime minister is locked out of his country and faces pressure to resign|website=[[Associated Press News]]|date=6 March 2024|access-date=7 March 2024|archive-date=6 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240306214053/https://apnews.com/article/haiti-prime-minister-gangs-resign-e583a191a2f800bc63752220a47dec0d|url-status=live}}] Henry agreed to resign once a transitional government had been formed. As of that month, nearly half of Haiti's population was living under [[2024 famine in Haiti|acute food insecurity]], according to the [[World Food Programme]].[{{cite news|newspaper=Le Nouvelliste|last=Robenson|first=Geffrard|date=25 April 2024|title=Les membres du Conseil présidentiel de transition ont prêté serment, tôt jeudi 25 avril 2024, au Palais national|url=https://lenouvelliste.com/article/247858/les-membres-du-conseil-presidentiel-de-transition-ont-prete-serment-tot-jeudi-25-avril-2024-au-palais-national|language=fr|access-date=1 May 2024|archive-date=26 April 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240426122820/https://lenouvelliste.com/article/247858/les-membres-du-conseil-presidentiel-de-transition-ont-prete-serment-tot-jeudi-25-avril-2024-au-palais-national|url-status=live}}] [[Michel Patrick Boisvert]] was named acting prime minister.[{{cite news |title=New Haitian Prime Minister Sworn In |url=https://www.barrons.com/news/new-haitian-prime-minister-sworn-in-7717df19 |access-date=29 November 2024 |agency=Agence France Presse |work=Barron's |date=3 June 2024 |archive-date=2 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202100720/https://www.barrons.com/news/new-haitian-prime-minister-sworn-in-7717df19 |url-status=live }}] On 10 November, [[Alix Didier Fils-Aimé]] replaced Conille as acting prime minister.[{{cite news |title=Le nouveau Premier ministre haïtien Alix Didier Fils-Aimé a prêté serment |date=11 November 2024 |url=https://www.rfi.fr/fr/am%C3%A9riques/20241111-qui-est-alix-didier-fils-aim%C3%A9-nomm%C3%A9-premier-ministre-en-ha%C3%AFti |access-date=29 November 2024 |work=[[Radio France Internationale]] |language=fr}}]
==Geography==
{{Main|Geography of Haiti}}
[[File:Haiti topographic map-fr.svg|thumb|upright=1.6|Topographical map of Haiti]]
Haiti forms the western three-eighths of Hispaniola, the second largest island in the [[Greater Antilles]]. At {{convert|27750|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}} Haiti is the third largest country in the Caribbean behind Cuba and the Dominican Republic, the latter sharing a {{convert|360|km|mi|0|adj=on|sp=us}} [[Dominican Republic–Haiti border|border]] with Haiti. The country has a roughly horseshoe shape and because of this it has a disproportionately long coastline, second in length ({{convert|1771|km|mi|0|abbr=on|disp=or}}) behind Cuba in the Greater Antilles.[{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/today/placesinthenews/archive/2010arch/20100114_haiti.html|title=Geography: Haiti|website=[[Library of Congress]]|access-date=29 September 2014|archive-date=9 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809172231/https://www.loc.gov/today/placesinthenews/archive/2010arch/20100114_haiti.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/caribb/haiti/htland.htm|title=Geography: Haiti|access-date=29 September 2014|archive-date=29 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929181413/https://www.worldatlas.com/maps/haiti|url-status=live}}]
Haiti is the most mountainous country in the Caribbean. Its terrain consists of mountains interspersed with small coastal plains and river valleys.[{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|title=CIA World Factbook – Haiti|access-date=3 September 2019|archive-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209014627/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead}}] Plains are only 22% of its territory.{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=315}} The climate is tropical, with some variation depending on altitude. The highest point is [[Pic la Selle]], at {{convert|2680|m|ft|0||sp=us}}.[{{cite book |last=NgCheong-Lum |first=Roseline |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FUSD2v4EQE8C |title=Haiti (Cultures of the World) |publisher=Times Editions |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7614-1968-6 |location=New York |page=19 |access-date=29 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230217144429/https://books.google.com/books?id=FUSD2v4EQE8C |archive-date=17 February 2023 |url-status=live}}][Jennifer Wells, [https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2010/11/21/a_dam_for_the_people_and_a_people_damned.html "A dam for the people, and A people damned"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903191441/https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2010/11/21/a_dam_for_the_people_and_a_people_damned.html |date=3 September 2019 }}, ''Toronto Star'', 21 November 2010]
[[File:Aerial 2.jpeg|thumb|right|Saint-Marc Arrondissement, [[Artibonite (department)|Artibonite Department]]]]
The southern region or '''Xaragua Region''' consists of the ''[[Plaine du Cul-de-Sac]]'' (the southeast) and the mountainous southern peninsula (the [[Tiburon Peninsula, Haiti|Tiburon Peninsula]]). The Plaine du Cul-de-Sac is a natural depression that harbors the country's saline lakes, such as [[Trou Caïman]] and Haiti's largest lake, [[Étang Saumatre]]. The [[Chaîne de la Selle]] mountain range – an extension of the southern mountain chain of the Dominican Republic (the Sierra de Baoruco) – extends from the Massif de la Selle in the east to the [[Massif de la Hotte]] in the west.[{{cite web|url=http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/haiti/rock.htm|title=Whose Rock Is It? Yes, the Haitians Care|author=Larry Rohter|date=19 October 1998|work=Port-au-Prince Journal (reprinted in New York Times)|access-date=28 January 2012|archive-date=8 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408000212/http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/haiti/rock.htm|url-status=live}}] is subject to an ongoing territorial dispute with the United States, who currently administer the island.[{{cite web|author=|date=August 2000|publisher=US Geological Survey|title=Navassa Island: A Photographic Tour (1998–1999)|access-date=18 November 2012|url=http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/navassa|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121119101317/http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/navassa/|archive-date=19 November 2012}}]
===Climate===
[[File:Haiti Köppen.svg|thumb|left|Köppen climate types of Haiti]]
The climate is tropical with some variation depending on altitude.[{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010rja6/#summary|title="Magnitude 7.0 – HAITI REGION Tectonic Summary" United States Geological Survey, 12 January 2010|publisher=Earthquake.usgs.gov|access-date=11 January 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115110510/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2010/us2010rja6/|archive-date=15 January 2010}}] After the earthquake of 2010, there was no evidence of [[surface rupture]], and geologists' findings were based on seismological, geological and ground deformation data.[{{cite journal|last=Hayes|first=G.P.|author2=Briggs R.W.|author3=Sladen A.|author4=Fielding E.J.|author5=Prentice C.|author6=Hudnut K.|author7=Mann P.|author8=Taylor F.W.|author9=Crone A.J. |author10=Gold R.|author11=Ito T.|author12=Simons M.|year=2010|title=Complex rupture during the 12 January 2010 Haiti earthquake|journal=Nature Geoscience|doi=10.1038/ngeo977|volume=3|issue=11|pages=800–805|bibcode=2010NatGe...3..800H|url=https://authors.library.caltech.edu/21200/2/ngeo977-s1.pdf|access-date=13 July 2019|archive-date=2 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202124109/https://authors.library.caltech.edu/21200/2/ngeo977-s1.pdf|url-status=live}}] The northern boundary of the fault is where the [[Caribbean plate]] shifts eastwards by about {{convert|20|mm|in|abbr=in}} per year in relation to the [[North American plate]]. The [[strike-slip fault]] system in the region has two branches in Haiti, the [[Septentrional-Oriente fault zone|Septentrional-Oriente fault]] in the north and the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault in the south.{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}
A 2007 earthquake hazard study notes that the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault zone could be at the end of its seismic cycle and concludes that a worst-case forecast would involve a 7.2 Mw earthquake, similar in size to the [[1692 Jamaica earthquake]].[{{cite journal|last=DeMets|first=C.|author2=Wiggins-Grandison W.|year=2007|title=Deformation of Jamaica and motion of the Gonâve microplate from GPS and seismic data|journal=[[Geophysical Journal International]]|volume=168|issue=1|pages=362–378|doi=10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03236.x|bibcode=2007GeoJI.168..362D|doi-access=free}}] A study team performing a hazard assessment of the fault system recommended "high priority" historical geologic rupture studies, as the fault was fully locked and had recorded few earthquakes in the preceding 40 years.[{{cite web|url=http://www.ig.utexas.edu/jsg/18_cgg/Mann3.htm|title=Entiquillo-Plantain Garden Strike-Slip Fault Zone: A Major Seismic Hazard Affecting Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica|publisher=18th Caribbean Geological Conference|last1=Mann|first1=Paul|last2=Calais|first2=Eric|last3=Demets|first3=Chuck|last4=Prentice|first4=Carol S|last5=Wiggins-Grandison|first5=Margaret|date=March 2008|access-date=13 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100116160020/http://www.ig.utexas.edu/jsg/18_cgg/Mann3.htm|archive-date=16 January 2010|url-status=dead}}] A magnitude 7.0 earthquake happened on this fault zone on 12 January 2010.[{{Cite web|date=2021-10-06|title=3 Questions: Understanding the Haiti earthquakes|url=https://news.mit.edu/2021/3-questions-camilla-cattania-william-frank-haiti-earthquakes-1006|access-date=2024-06-01|website=MIT News {{!}} Massachusetts Institute of Technology|language=en|archive-date=1 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601090904/https://news.mit.edu/2021/3-questions-camilla-cattania-william-frank-haiti-earthquakes-1006|url-status=live}}]
Haiti has rare elements such as gold, which can be found at the [[Mont Organisé]] [[gold mining|gold mine]].[[http://www.ute.gouv.ht/caracol/images/stories/docs/environmental%20assessment%20of%20the%20usaidhaiti%20north%20park%20power%20project.pdf ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF THE USAID/HAITI NORTH PARK POWER PROJECT] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220805102537/http://www.ute.gouv.ht/caracol/images/stories/docs/environmental%20assessment%20of%20the%20usaidhaiti%20north%20park%20power%20project.pdf |date=5 August 2022 }}. United States Agency for International Development. ute.gouv.ht. June 2011] There are no currently active volcanoes; no volcanic activity has been experienced since the [[Miocene]] age.[{{cite journal |last=Brown |first=John S. |title=The Hot Springs of the Republic of Haiti |journal=The Journal of Geology |publisher=University of Chicago Press |volume=32 |issue=5 |year=1924 |url=https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/623111 |issn=0022-1376 |doi=10.1086/623111 |pages=384–399 |bibcode=1924JG.....32..384B |s2cid=128421492 |access-date=25 July 2022 |archive-date=22 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220822165823/https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/623111 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription}}]
===Environment===
{{Main|Environment of Haiti|Deforestation in Haiti}}
[[File:Haiti deforestation.jpg|thumb|Haiti's border with the [[Dominican Republic]] in 2002, showing the extent of deforestation on the Haitian side (left)]]
The [[Erosion|soil erosion]] released from the upper [[Drainage basin|catchments]] and deforestation have caused periodic and severe flooding, as experienced, for example, on 17 September 2004. Earlier in May that year, floods had killed over 3,000 people on Haiti's southern border with the Dominican Republic.[{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/weather/hurricane/2004-09-23-haiti-deforest_x.htm|title=Deforestation Exacerbates Haiti Floods|work=USA Today|date=23 September 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=23 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111223200050/http://www.usatoday.com/weather/hurricane/2004-09-23-haiti-deforest_x.htm|url-status=dead}}]
Haiti's forests covered 60% of the country as recently as 50 years ago, but that has been halved to a current estimate of 30% tree cover. This estimate poses a stark difference from the erroneous figure of 2% which has been oft-cited in discourse concerning the country's environmental condition.[{{cite web|url=http://www.envirosociety.org/2016/05/haiti-is-covered-with-trees/|title=Haiti Is Covered with Trees|website=EnviroSociety|last=Tarter|first=Andrew|date=19 May 2016|access-date=19 May 2016|archive-date=16 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171116104040/http://www.envirosociety.org/2016/05/haiti-is-covered-with-trees/|url-status=live}}] Haiti had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 4.01/10, ranking it 137th globally out of 172 countries.[{{cite journal|last1=Grantham|first1=H. S.|last2=Duncan|first2=A.|last3=Evans|first3=T. D.|last4=Jones|first4=K. R.|last5=Beyer|first5=H. L.|last6=Schuster|first6=R.|last7=Walston|first7=J.|last8=Ray|first8=J. C.|last9=Robinson|first9=J. G.|last10=Callow|first10=M.|last11=Clements|first11=T.|last12=Costa|first12=H. M.|last13=DeGemmis|first13=A.|last14=Elsen|first14=P. R.|last15=Ervin|first15=J.|last16=Franco|first16=P.|last17=Goldman|first17=E.|last18=Goetz|first18=S.|last19=Hansen|first19=A.|last20=Hofsvang|first20=E.|last21=Jantz|first21=P.|last22=Jupiter|first22=S.|last23=Kang|first23=A.|last24=Langhammer|first24=P.|last25=Laurance|first25=W. F.|last26=Lieberman|first26=S.|last27=Linkie|first27=M.|last28=Malhi|first28=Y.|last29=Maxwell|first29=S.|last30=Mendez|first30=M.|last31=Mittermeier|first31=R.|last32=Murray|first32=N. J.|last33=Possingham|first33=H.|last34=Radachowsky|first34=J.|last35=Saatchi|first35=S.|last36=Samper|first36=C.|last37=Silverman|first37=J.|last38=Shapiro|first38=A.|last39=Strassburg|first39=B.|last40=Stevens|first40=T.|last41=Stokes|first41=E.|last42=Taylor|first42=R.|last43=Tear|first43=T.|last44=Tizard|first44=R.|last45=Venter|first45=O.|last46=Visconti|first46=P.|last47=Wang|first47=S.|last48=Watson|first48=J. E. M.|title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material|journal=Nature Communications|volume=11|issue=1|year=2020|page=5978|issn=2041-1723|doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3|doi-access=free|pmid=33293507|pmc=7723057|bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G}}] Major [[List of national parks of Haiti|national parks in Haiti]] include the [[La Visite National Park]] and the [[Pic Macaya National Park]].{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=323}}
Scientists at the [[The Earth Institute#Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN)Earth Institute|Columbia University's Center for International Earth Science Information Network]] and the [[United Nations Environment Programme]] are working on the Haiti Regenerative Initiative, an initiative aiming to reduce poverty and natural disaster vulnerability through ecosystem restoration and sustainable resource management.[{{Cite web|url=http://haiti.ciesin.columbia.edu/|title=Haiti GeoPortal at CIESIN|year=2012|publisher=Columbia University|location=New York|access-date=6 December 2016|archive-date=11 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220911115349/http://haiti.ciesin.columbia.edu/|url-status=dead}}]
====Biodiversity====
{{Main|Wildlife of Haiti}}
[[File:Hispaniolan Solenodon crop.jpg|thumb|right|The endangered Hispaniolan solenodon, endemic to the island]]
Haiti is home to four ecoregions: [[Hispaniolan moist forests]], [[Hispaniolan dry forests]], [[Hispaniolan pine forests]], and [[Greater Antilles mangroves]].[{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287}}] Despite its small size, the mountainous terrain and resultant multiple climatic zones have resulted in a wide variety of plant life.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 6.] About 5,000 species of plants have been identified in Haiti, including over 3,000 woody plants, trees, and shrubs, 600 species of [[fern]], and 160 [[orchid]]s.{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=322}} Notable tree species include the [[breadfruit tree]], [[mango tree]], [[acacia]], [[mahogany]], [[coconut palm]], [[royal palm]] and [[Cedrela odorata|West Indian cedar]].[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 4.] Notable endemic species include the [[Hispaniolan trogon]], [[Hispaniolan parakeet]], [[grey-crowned tanager]] and the [[Hispaniolan amazon]].[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 5]
==Government and politics==
{{Main|Politics of Haiti}}
{{See also|Foreign relations of Haiti}}
{{multiple image
| total_width = 370
| caption_align = center
| image1 = Coat of arms of Haiti.svg
| caption1 = ''Vacant''
[[President of Haiti|President]]
| image2 = 2026 Alix Didier Fils-Aimé (cropped).jpg
| caption2 = [[Alix Didier Fils-Aimé]]
[[Prime Minister of Haiti|Acting Prime Minister]]
| align = right
}}
The government is a [[semi-presidential system|semi-presidential]] [[republic]],[{{cite web|title=1987 Constitution of the Republic of Haiti|url=http://pdba.georgetown.edu/constitutions/haiti/haiti1987.html|publisher=Georgetown University|access-date=9 July 2011|at=Article 134|archive-date=1 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901061334/https://pdba.georgetown.edu/Constitutions/Haiti/haiti1987.html|url-status=live}}]{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 134}} A president cannot serve two consecutive terms or more than two terms in total, but can be reelected for a second term after an interval.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 134–3}} The [[prime minister of Haiti]] acts as head of government and is appointed by the president, chosen from the majority party in the National Assembly.[{{Cite web|author=|date=2009-08-01|title=OEA - Organización de los Estados Americanos: Democracia para la paz, la seguridad y el desarrollo|url=https://www.oas.org/es/sap/deco/moe/haiti2011/ficha.asp|access-date=2024-06-01|website=www.oas.org|language=es|archive-date=1 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601091443/https://www.oas.org/es/sap/deco/moe/haiti2011/ficha.asp|url-status=live}}]{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 133}} The president is the nominal [[commander-in-chief]] of the [[Armed Forces of Haiti]] and the [[Haitian National Police|National Police]].{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Articles 141, 143}}
Legislative power is vested in the two chambers of the [[National Assembly of Haiti]], the [[Senate (Haiti)|Senate]] and the [[Chamber of Deputies (Haiti)|Chamber of Deputies]].[{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1741707&ps=rs|title=Haiti Starts Over, Once Again|author=Michele Kelemen|newspaper=Npr.org|date=2 March 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=27 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211027003735/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1741707|url-status=live}}] A long history of oppression by dictators such as François Duvalier and his son Jean-Claude Duvalier has markedly affected the republic's governance and society, and since then Haiti has been transitioning to a democratic system.[{{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Luke |title=Haiti left with no elected government officials as it spirals towards anarchy |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=10 January 2023 |access-date=6 November 2025 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/10/haiti-no-elected-officials-anarchy-failed-state |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208113432/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jan/10/haiti-no-elected-officials-anarchy-failed-state |url-status=live }}]
The Transitional Presidential Council with nine members was created when acting prime minister Ariel Henry was forced to resign on 24 April 2024.[{{Cite web |title=New leader takes over Haiti's presidential council as violence persists |date=7 March 2025 |access-date=8 July 2025 |work=Associated Press |url=https://apnews.com/article/haiti-transitional-presidential-council-fritz-alphonse-jean-gangs-c95b666317c278fee61e5ef1fac7b01b |archive-date=2 February 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260202154204/https://apnews.com/article/haiti-transitional-presidential-council-fritz-alphonse-jean-gangs-c95b666317c278fee61e5ef1fac7b01b |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |title=Locked in Transition: Politics and Violence in Haiti |work=[[International Crisis Group]] |date=19 February 2025 |access-date=8 July 2025 |url=https://www.crisisgroup.org/latin-america-caribbean/caribbean/haiti/107-locked-transition-politics-and-violence-haiti |archive-date=26 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250626185233/https://www.crisisgroup.org/latin-america-caribbean/caribbean/haiti/107-locked-transition-politics-and-violence-haiti |url-status=live }}] The council intended to hold a two-round election in November 2025 and January 2026, to inaugurate a new government in February 2026,[{{Cite news |first1=Corinne |last1=Frilet |first2=Jean-Michel |last2=Hauteville |title=Haiti's transitional president Leslie Voltaire announces November 2025 elections |date=31 January 2025 |access-date=8 July 2025 |newspaper=[[Le Monde]] |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/01/31/haiti-s-transitional-president-leslie-voltaire-announces-november-2025-elections_6737642_4.html |archive-date=6 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250906100628/https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/01/31/haiti-s-transitional-president-leslie-voltaire-announces-november-2025-elections_6737642_4.html |url-status=live }}] but it has been undermined by corruption scandals and infighting.[{{cite web |last=Charles |first=Jacqueline |title=Haiti's presidential council is dysfunctional, says member as time in office runs out |date=18 June 2025 |access-date=8 July 2025 |work=[[Miami Herald]] |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article308861835.html |archive-date=22 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250622023312/https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article308861835.html |url-status=live }}] The Haitian government and the Kenyan-led [[Gang Suppression Force|Multinational Security Support Mission]], have not been able to restore public safety in the country.[{{Cite web |last=Blaise |first=Juhakenson |title=Haiti elections 'impossible' by 2026 government turnover deadline |work=[[The Haitian Times]] |date=4 November 2025 |access-date=4 November 2025 |url=https://haitiantimes.com/2025/11/04/haiti-elections-impossible-for-2026-turnover/ |archive-date=4 November 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251104115907/https://haitiantimes.com/2025/11/04/haiti-elections-impossible-for-2026-turnover/ |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |last=Blaise |first=Juhakenson |title=Haiti's Provisional Electoral Council sets elections for August 2026 |work=The Haitian Times |date=17 November 2025 |access-date=18 November 2025 |url=https://haitiantimes.com/2025/11/17/haiti-elections-august-30-2026/ |archive-date=17 November 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251117212422/https://haitiantimes.com/2025/11/17/haiti-elections-august-30-2026/ |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |title=Haiti – FLASH : Official Calendar of Upcoming Elections |date=16 November 2025 |access-date=18 November 2025 |work=www.haitilibre.com |url=https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-46218-haiti-flash-official-calendar-of-upcoming-elections.html |archive-date=16 November 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251116195124/https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-46218-haiti-flash-official-calendar-of-upcoming-elections.html |url-status=live }}] and the expiration of the Council's mandate on 7 February 2026 left acting prime minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé as the sole executive until the election, with the support of several major political parties.[{{Cite web |last=Blaise |first=Juhakenson |title=Haitian political actors sign pact for stability and elections, approve Fils-Aimé's leadership |work=The Haitian Times |date=24 February 2026 |access-date=25 February 2026 |url=https://haitiantimes.com/2026/02/24/haitian-political-actors-signed-a-pact/ |archive-date=24 February 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260224174957/https://haitiantimes.com/2026/02/24/haitian-political-actors-signed-a-pact/ |url-status=live }}]
Haiti is a member of a wide range of international and regional organizations, such as the United Nations, CARICOM, [[Community of Latin American and Caribbean States]], [[International Monetary Fund]], [[Organisation of American States]], {{Lang|fr|[[Organisation internationale de la Francophonie]]|italic=no}}, [[OPANAL]] and the [[World Trade Organization]].[{{cite web|url=http://lenouvelliste.com/lenouvelliste/article/148647/Creation-de-cinq-nouvelles-communes-par-decret-presidentiel|title=Création de cinq nouvelles communes par décret présidentiel|editor=Olivier, Louis-Joseph|date=14 August 2015|work=Le Nouvelliste|access-date=17 March 2016|language=fr|archive-date=23 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160323033146/http://lenouvelliste.com/lenouvelliste/article/148647/Creation-de-cinq-nouvelles-communes-par-decret-presidentiel|url-status=dead}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-14858-haiti-politic-5-new-communes-in-haiti.html|title=Haïti – Politique: 5 nouvelles communes en Haïti|date=16 August 2015|work=Haiti Libre|access-date=17 March 2016|archive-date=28 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028102215/https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-14858-haiti-politic-5-new-communes-in-haiti.html|url-status=live}}][{{cite web|url=http://haiti-reference.com/pages/plan/geographie-et-tourisme/divisions-territoriales/|title=7300.- Divisions territoriales|date=17 August 2015|publisher=Haiti-Référence|access-date=17 March 2016|language=fr|archive-date=22 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322033652/https://www.haiti-reference.com/pages/plan/geographie-et-tourisme/divisions-territoriales/|url-status=live}}] Departments and communes have autonomy from the central government in their administration and finances.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 66}}{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 77}} Communal sections, communes, and departments are led by a three-member council which is elected either by universal suffrage (in communal sections) or by an assembly in communes and departments.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Articles 63, 66, 78}} An assembly consists of representatives from each of the previous level of territorial units.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Articles 67, 80}}
{| class="sortable wikitable" style="text-align:left; font-size:85%;"
|- style="font-size:100%; text-align:right;"
! rowspan="2" style="width:20px;" |# !! rowspan="2" style="width:150px;" | Department !! rowspan="2" style="width:70px;" |Capital !! colspan="2" style="width:80px;" | Area !! rowspan="2" style="width:60px;" | Population
(2015 census)
|-
! scope="col" | km2 !! scope="col" | mi2
|-
| 1 || [[Nord-Ouest (department)|Nord-Ouest]] || [[Port-de-Paix]] || {{cvt|2102.88|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}} || {{right|728,807}}
|-
| 2 || [[Nord (Haitian department)|Nord]] || [[Cap-Haïtien]] || {{cvt|2114.91|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|1,067,177}}
|-
| 3 || [[Nord-Est (department)|Nord-Est]] || [[Fort-Liberté]] || {{cvt|1623|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|393,967}}
|-
| 4 || [[Artibonite (department)|Artibonite]] || [[Gonaïves]] || {{cvt|4887|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|1,727,524}}
|-
| 5 || [[Centre (department)|Centre]] || [[Hinche]] || {{cvt|3487.41|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|746,236}}
|-
| 6 || [[Ouest (department)|Ouest]] || [[Port-au-Prince]] || {{cvt|4982.56|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|4,029,705}}
|-
|7 || [[Grand'Anse (department)|Grand'Anse]] || [[Jérémie]] || {{cvt|1911.97|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|468,301}}
|-
| 8 || [[Nippes]] || [[Miragoâne]] || {{cvt|1267.77|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|342,325}}
|-
| 9 || [[Sud (department)|Sud]] || [[Les Cayes]] || {{cvt|2653.60|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|774,976}}
|-
| 10 || [[Sud-Est (department)|Sud-Est]] || [[Jacmel]] || {{cvt|2034.10|km2|mi2|0|adj=ri0|abbr=values|sortable=on|disp=table}}|| {{right|632,601}}
|}
===Military and law enforcement===
{{Main|Armed Forces of Haiti|Haitian National Police}}
[[File:Haiti National Police (HNP) graduation day on 10 January 2025 taken by the United States Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti - 78.jpg|thumb|Newly graduated Haitian National Police officers in 2025]]
The [[Armed Forces of Haiti]] ({{abbr|FAd'H|Forces Armées d'Haïti}}) and the [[Haitian National Police]] ({{abbr|PNH|Police Nationale d'Haïti}}) together officially make up the Public Force of Haiti,{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 263}} whose personnel take an oath to the constitution and the flag of the country.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 263–2}} The Armed Forces consist of the [[Haitian Army|land]], sea, and [[Haitian Aviation Corps|air]] forces, along with technical support.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 264}} They are led by an active-duty [[general officer]] who is appointed as the [[List of commanders-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Haiti|commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Haiti]].{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Articles 264–1, 264–2, 264–3}} The [[Ministry of Defense (Haiti)|Ministry of Defense]] is the main oversight body of the armed forces[{{cite web|url=http://www.md.gouv.ht/mission.php|title=Missions et Attributions du Ministère de la Défense|publisher=Ministere de la Defense|access-date=21 October 2014|archive-date=17 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117025602/https://www.md.gouv.ht/mission.php|url-status=dead}}] while the police are part of the [[Ministry of Justice and Public Security (Haiti)|Ministry of Justice and Public Security]].{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 269}} The constitutional duties of the FA'dH include defending the country's borders, responding to natural disasters, and providing assistance to the police.{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 266}} The 1987 constitution provides the basis for conscription,{{sfn|Constitution of Haiti|loc=Article 268}} though it has never been used.{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=470}} The Armed Forces were disbanded in 1995 and security became solely the responsibility of the civilian National Police{{sfn|Metz|2001|pages=468–469}}[{{cite web|url=https://www.gsdrc.org/document-library/haiti-police-and-law-enforcement/|title=Haiti: Police and Law Enforcement|date=2010|access-date=18 June 2017|publisher=GSDRC|archive-date=8 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170608090305/http://www.gsdrc.org/document-library/haiti-police-and-law-enforcement|url-status=dead}}] until 2017. As of 2023 the Armed Forces had a strength of 2,000 service members, who were trained in nearby countries. The military has had a small role during the gang war, which includes protecting government officials.[{{Cite web |first1=Evens |last1=Sanon |first2=Dánica |last2=Coto |title=Young Haitians join military as widespread gang violence creates rare job opportunities |work=[[PBS]] |date=28 August 2024 |access-date=8 July 2025 |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/young-haitians-join-military-as-widespread-gang-violence-creates-rare-job-opportunities |archive-date=24 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250824030335/https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/young-haitians-join-military-as-widespread-gang-violence-creates-rare-job-opportunities |url-status=live }}]
The National Police was established in 1995 to replace the military's former role in law enforcement, initially recruited from among former military personnel and Haitian migrants to the United States.{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=477}} In 1999 it had 6,000 members;{{sfn|Metz|2001|page=477}} in 2010, it numbered 7,000;[{{cite news|last=Sadowski|first=Dennis|title=Hope and struggles remain in Haiti six months after earthquake|newspaper=Florida Catholic|location=Orlando, Florida|pages=A7|date=6–19 August 2010}}] and in 2016 it had 9,000.[{{Cite web |last=Boutellis |first=Arthur |title=Where is the Haitian National Police Headed? |date=21 September 2012 |access-date=25 February 2026 |work=IPI Global Observatory |url=https://theglobalobservatory.org/2012/09/where-is-the-haitian-national-police-headed/ |archive-date=12 April 2026 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260412200932/https://theglobalobservatory.org/2012/09/where-is-the-haitian-national-police-headed/ |url-status=live }}] Since the start of the gang war in 2020 the PNH has seen increasingly high levels of desertion and casualties.[{{cite web|url=http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/world/haiti.htm|title=Haitian Law|publisher=Jurist.law.pitt.edu|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130630063029/http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/world/haiti.htm|archive-date=30 June 2013}}][{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6120522.stm|title=Haiti tops world corruption table|work=BBC News|date=6 November 2006|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=28 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728134841/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6120522.stm|url-status=live}}] According to a 2006 report by the [[Corruption Perceptions Index]], there is a strong correlation between corruption and poverty in Haiti. The republic ranked first of all countries surveyed for levels of perceived domestic corruption.[{{cite web|url=http://transparency.ie/content/2006-corruption-perceptions-index-reinforces-link-between-poverty-and-corruption-and-shows-w|title=2006 Corruption Perceptions Index reinforces link between poverty and corruption|publisher=Transparency International|date=6 November 2006|access-date=15 January 2009|archive-date=12 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512214417/http://transparency.ie/content/2006-corruption-perceptions-index-reinforces-link-between-poverty-and-corruption-and-shows-w|url-status=live}}] It is estimated that President "Baby Doc" Duvalier, his wife [[Michèle Bennett|Michele]], and their agents stole US$504 million from the treasury between 1971 and 1986.[{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/bribe/2009/05/haiti-the-long-road-to-recovery.html|title=Haiti: The Long Road to Recovery, Public Broadcasting Service|author=Siri Schubert|publisher=Pbs.org|date=22 May 2009|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=1 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130901041909/http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/bribe/2009/05/haiti-the-long-road-to-recovery.html|url-status=live}}] Some media outlets alleged that millions were stolen by President Aristide.[{{cite journal|title=Aristide Development|journal=American Spectator|volume=27|issue=7|date=1 July 1994}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.radiokiskeya.com/RapportUCREF.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060501062854/http://www.radiokiskeya.com/RapportUCREF.pdf|archive-date=1 May 2006|title=Rapport UCREF|access-date=24 July 2013}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.dominicantoday.com/dr/world/2005/10/31/6524/Probe-of-Aristide-administration-finds-evidence-of-embezzlement|title=Probe of Aristide administration finds evidence of embezzlement|work=Dominican Today|date=31 October 2005|access-date=5 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304200037/http://www.dominicantoday.com/dr/world/2005/10/31/6524/Probe-of-Aristide-administration-finds-evidence-of-embezzlement|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB117124344952105351|title=The Haiti File|author=Mary Anastasia O'Grady|publisher=Online.wsj.com|date=12 February 2007|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=15 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015232318/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB117124344952105351|url-status=live}}] The BBC described [[pyramid scheme]]s in which Haitians lost hundreds of millions in 2002, as the "only real economic initiative" of the Aristide years.[{{cite news|last=Schifferes|first=Steve|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3522155.stm|title=Haiti: An economic basket-case|work=BBC News|date=1 March 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=28 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728143315/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3522155.stm|url-status=live}}]
After the fall of the military government in the early 1990s, the presence of a large quantity of firearms and paramilitary groups (consisting of former soldiers, gangsters, and other criminal elements) gave Haiti one of the highest crime rates in the world as of 2005.[{{Cite journal |last=Carey |first=Henry F. |title=The Third U.S. Intervention and Haiti's Paramilitary Predicament |journal=Journal of Haitian Studies |volume=11 |issue=1 |date=2005 |page=93 |jstor=41715292 }}] According to the 2023 [[United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime]] report, due to escalating gang violence and the near-collapse of state institutions, the security situation has deteriorated sharply. The official homicide rate for Haiti more than doubled in 2023 to approximately 40.9 per 100,000 (with 4,789 homicides reported by the UN).[United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH). ''Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (S/2024/62)''. New York: United Nations Security Council, January 15, 2024. ] According to the UN, Haiti faces a worsening crisis marked by extreme violence, political instability, and a deepening humanitarian emergency. UN Special Representative [[Virginia Gamba (UN official)|Virginia Gamba]] condemned the use of children by armed gangs, highlighting sexual violence as a weapon of war. The removal of Prime Minister Garry Conille has further destabilized governance. Armed groups have targeted schools and hospitals, displacing thousands and leaving 300,000 children without education. The UN calls for urgent humanitarian aid, enhanced security efforts, and political unity to address the crisis, as over 2.7 million people live under gang control.[{{Cite web |date=2024-11-11 |title=Children face unprecedented crisis amid rising violence in Haiti {{!}} UN News |url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/11/1156826 |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=news.un.org |language=en |archive-date=1 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250201160021/https://news.un.org/en/story/2024/11/1156826 |url-status=live }}][{{Cite web |title=Almost one in eight children internally displaced in Haiti as armed violence continues – UNICEF |url=https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/almost-one-eight-children-internally-displaced-haiti-armed-violence-continues-unicef |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250126163751/https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/almost-one-eight-children-internally-displaced-haiti-armed-violence-continues-unicef |archive-date=26 January 2025 |access-date=2025-02-07 |website=www.unicef.org |language=en |url-status=live}}]
Port-au-Prince penitentiary is home to half of Haiti's prisoners. The prison has a capacity of 1,200 detainees, but {{as of|2017|November|lc=y}} the penitentiary was obliged to keep 4,359 detainees, a 363% occupancy level.[{{Cite news|url=https://apnews.com/a43ce17acfd0425cb2af90a1133a8418|title=Malnutrition killing inmates in Haiti jails|work=apnews.com|first=David|last=McFadden|date=20 February 2017|access-date=2 January 2020|archive-date=2 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200102124056/https://apnews.com/a43ce17acfd0425cb2af90a1133a8418|url-status=live}}] The inability to receive sufficient funds has caused deadly cases of malnutrition, combined with the tight living conditions, increases the risk of infectious diseases such as tuberculosis.[{{Cite web |title=Custom Report Excerpts: The Bahamas |url=https://2021-2025.state.gov/report/custom/da7d4d248e/ |access-date=2025-02-15 |website=United States Department of State |language=en-US |archive-date=16 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250216191406/https://2021-2025.state.gov/report/custom/da7d4d248e/ |url-status=live }}] Unless families are able to provide the necessary funds for inmates to appear before a judge, there is a very slim chance the inmate would have a trial, on average, within 10 years.[{{Cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/living-hell-officials-alarmed-by-upsurge-of-inmates-dying-in-haiti-prisons/|title=Living hell: Officials alarmed by upsurge of inmates dying in Haiti prisons|date=20 February 2017|work=Fox News|access-date=30 March 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=31 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180331035837/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/02/20/living-hell-officials-alarmed-by-upsurge-inmates-dying-in-haiti-prisons.html|url-status=live}}] In confined living spaces for 22–23 hours a day, inmates are not provided with latrines and are forced to defecate into plastic bags. These conditions were considered inhumane by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in 2008.[{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-39034992|title=Haitian prison rife with malnutrition|date=21 February 2017|work=BBC News|access-date=30 March 2018|language=en-GB|archive-date=4 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504000600/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-39034992|url-status=live}}] On 3 March 2024, armed gangs stormed the main prison in Port-au-Prince, and about 3,700 inmates escaped, while 12 people were killed.[{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-68462851|title=Haiti violence: Haiti gangs demand PM resign after mass jailbreak|work=BBC News|date=3 March 2024|access-date=11 March 2024|archive-date=12 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240312034751/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-68462851|url-status=live}}]
==Economy==
[[File:GDP per capita develoment of Haiti.svg|thumb|right|Historical GDP per capita development]]{{Main|Economy of Haiti}}
The [[economy of Haiti]] declined dramatically after the 2010 earthquake and subsequent outbreak of cholera, with the country's nominal [[Gross domestic product|GDP]] falling by 8% (from US$12.15 billion to US$11.18 billion).[{{cite web|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|work=[[The World Factbook]]|title=Haiti|date=22 September 2021|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|access-date=24 January 2021|archive-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209014627/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead}}] Since then it has grown to US$33.55 billion in nominal GDP as of 2025,[{{Cite web |title=World Economic Outlook (April 2025) – GDP, current prices |work=International Monetary Fund |access-date=7 July 2025 |url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/NGDPD@WEO/HTI |archive-date=8 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250708030653/https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/NGDPD@WEO/HTI |url-status=live }}] and during the same time period it grew from $26.88 billion to $38.2 billion in [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|PPP-adjusted GDP]].[{{Cite web |title=World Economic Outlook (April 2025) – GDP, current prices |work=International Monetary Fund |access-date=7 July 2025 |url=https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/PPPGDP@WEO/HTI |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806000546/https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/PPPGDP@WEO/HTI |url-status=live }}] Despite its tourism industry, Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the Americas, with corruption, political instability, poor infrastructure, lack of health care and lack of education cited as the main causes.[{{cite web|publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110423024550/http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/HTI.html|archive-date=23 April 2011|url=http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/HTI.html|title=International Human Development Indicators: Haiti|year=2010|url-status=dead}}] As of 2021, about 30% of the population lived in extreme poverty (making less than US$2.15 a day), and 87.6% made less than US$6.85. There is a division between the formal economy, which is controlled by an upper class and is concentrated in certain areas, and an informal economy that represents 90% of employment.[{{Cite web |title=BTI 2024 Haiti Country Report |access-date=7 July 2025 |work=[[Bertelsmann Transformation Index]] |url=https://bti-project.org/en/reports/country-report/HTI |archive-date=8 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250708030654/https://bti-project.org/en/reports/country-report/HTI |url-status=live }}]
Haiti became a member of the [[World Trade Organization]] in 1996. It liberalized its economy in the 1980s, removing tariff and non-tariff barriers, which had an impact on domestic businesses, especially in the agricultural sector. The existence of monopolies and oligopolies in many economic markets distorts the price setting mechanism, and is why the cost of goods and services in Haiti is the highest in the region.[{{cite web|url=http://www.wow509.com/news/jean-bertrand-aristide-net-worth/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141016002417/http://www.wow509.com/news/jean-bertrand-aristide-net-worth/|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 October 2014|title=Jean Bertrand Aristide net worth|work=WOW509|access-date=16 October 2014}}] U.S. aid to the Haitian government was cut off between 2001 and 2004.[{{cite news|url=https://archive.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2004/03/07/before_fall_of_aristide_haiti_hit_by_aid_cutoff/|title=Before fall of Aristide, Haiti hit by aid cutoff by|author=Farah Stockman|publisher=Boston.com|date=7 March 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304061421/http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2004/03/07/before_fall_of_aristide_haiti_hit_by_aid_cutoff/|url-status=live}}] After Aristide's departure in 2004, aid was restored and the [[Brazilian army]] led a [[United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti]] peacekeeping operation. After almost four years of recession, the economy grew by 1.5% in 2005.[{{cite web|url=https://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/haiti/economy/|title=Haiti: Economy|publisher=Michigan State University|access-date=16 January 2010|archive-date=7 April 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407044532/https://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/haiti/economy/|url-status=live}}] In September 2009, Haiti met the conditions set out by the [[IMF]] and [[World Bank]]'s [[Heavily Indebted Poor Countries]] program to qualify for cancellation of its external debt.[{{cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2009/cr09288.pdf|title=Haiti: Enhanced Initiative for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries|publisher=International Monetary Fund|date=September 2009|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=21 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621015540/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2009/cr09288.pdf|url-status=live}}]
In 2015, more than 90 percent of the government's budget came from an agreement with [[Petrocaribe]], a Venezuela-led oil alliance.[{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/index/pdf/2015/countries/haiti.pdf|title=Haiti Economy|access-date=11 April 2015|archive-date=2 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102170139/https://www.heritage.org/index/pdf/2015/countries/haiti.pdf|url-status=unfit}}]
===Foreign aid===
{{Further|Foreign aid to Haiti}}
Haiti received more than US$4 billion in aid from 1990 to 2003, including US$1.5 billion from the United States.[{{cite web|publisher=Thomson Reuters Foundation|url=http://www.trust.org/item/20090928173400-eslm0/|title=Haiti's aid controversy|author=Anastasia Moloney|date=28 September 2009|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=22 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722215735/http://www.trust.org/item/20090928173400-eslm0/|url-status=dead}}] The largest donor is the US, followed by Canada and the European Union.[{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/21/world/1-billion-is-pledged-to-help-haiti-rebuild-topping-request.html|title=$1 Billion Is Pledged to Help Haiti Rebuild, Topping Request|author=Christopher Marquis|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=21 July 2004|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080404/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/21/world/1-billion-is-pledged-to-help-haiti-rebuild-topping-request.html|url-status=live}}] In January 2010, following the earthquake, US President [[Barack Obama]] promised US$1.15 billion in assistance.[{{cite news|first=Jonathan M.|last=Katz|url=http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/04/11/haitis-police-struggle-control-ravaged-capital/|title=Haiti's police struggle to control ravaged capital|agency=Associated Press|date=11 April 2010|work=Fox News|access-date=14 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151015232317/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/04/11/haitis-police-struggle-control-ravaged-capital/|archive-date=15 October 2015|url-status=dead}}] The European Union pledged more than €400 million (US$616 million).[{{cite news|url=http://uk.news.yahoo.com/18/20100118/twl-haiti-fears-grows-despite-surge-in-r-4bdc673.html|title=Haiti fears grows despite surge in relief effort|work=[[Yahoo! News]]|date=18 January 2009}}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}] Dominican Republic provided extensive humanitarian aid, including the funding and construction of a public university,[{{cite news|url=http://elnuevodiario.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=272087|title=Universidad de Haití donada por RD se llamará ahora 'Roi Henry I'|work=El Nuevo Diario|access-date=20 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806181826/http://elnuevodiario.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=272087|archive-date=6 August 2016|url-status=dead}}] human capital, free healthcare services in the border region, and logistical support after the 2010 earthquake.[{{cite news|url=https://es.globalvoices.org/2010/01/16/republica-dominicana-ayuda-a-su-vecino-haiti-despues-del-terremoto/|title=República Dominicana: Ayuda a su vecino Haití después del terremoto|access-date=20 July 2016|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080411/https://es.globalvoices.org/2010/01/16/republica-dominicana-ayuda-a-su-vecino-haiti-despues-del-terremoto/|url-status=live}}]
The United Nations states that US$13.34 billion has been earmarked for post-earthquake reconstruction through 2020, though two years after the 2010 quake, less than half of that amount had actually been released. {{As of|2015}}, the US government has allocated US$4 billion, US$3 billion has already been spent, and the rest is dedicated to longer-term projects.[{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/what-does-haiti-have-show-13-billion-earthquake-aid-n281661|title=What does Haiti have to show for the US$13 billion in earthquake aid?-NBC News.com|website=[[NBC News]]|date=January 2015|access-date=7 October 2019|archive-date=4 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220704074958/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/investigations/what-does-haiti-have-show-13-billion-earthquake-aid-n281661|url-status=live}}]
===Trade===
According to the 2015 CIA [[World Factbook]], Haiti's main import partners are: Dominican Republic 35%, US 26.8%, Netherlands Antilles 8.7%, China 7% (est. 2013). Haiti's main export partner is the US 83.5% (est. 2013).[{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|title=The World Factbook|work=cia.gov|access-date=24 May 2015|archive-date=9 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209014627/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead}}] Haiti had a trade deficit of US$3 billion in 2011, or 41% of GDP.[{{cite web|last=Watkins|first=Tate|title=How Haiti's Future Depends on American Markets|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/05/how-haitis-future-depends-on-american-markets/275682/|work=The Atlantic|date=8 May 2013|access-date=24 July 2013}}]
===Energy===
{{Main|Electricity sector in Haiti}}
[[File:Haiti electricity production.svg|thumb|Haiti electricity production by source]]
[[File:Power plant in Port-au-Prince.JPEG|thumb|Power plant in Port-au-Prince]]
Haiti relies heavily on an oil alliance with [[Petrocaribe]] for much of its energy requirements. In recent years, hydroelectric, solar and wind energy have been explored as possible sustainable energy sources.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.clintonfoundation.org/our-work/clinton-foundation-haiti/programs/powering-haiti-clean-energy|title=Powering Haiti with Clean Energy|work=Clinton Foundation |access-date=1 September 2023}}] As of 2017, among all the countries in the Americas, Haiti produces the least energy. Less than a quarter of the country has electric coverage.[{{Cite journal|date=May 2017|title=The Haiti Sustainable Energy Programme|url=https://postconflict.unep.ch/publications/UNEP_Haiti_sustainable_energy.pdf|journal=UNEP|access-date=14 December 2018|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080359/https://postconflict.unep.ch/publications/UNEP_Haiti_sustainable_energy.pdf|url-status=dead}}] Most regions of Haiti that do have energy are powered by generators. These generators are often expensive and produce a lot of pollution. The areas that do get electricity experience power cuts on a daily basis, and some areas are limited to 12 hours of electricity a day. Electricity is provided by a small number of independent companies: Sogener, E-power, and Haytrac.[{{Cite journal|last=Pauyo|first=Jean|date=March 2017|title=Transmitting and Distributing Electricity in Haiti|url=https://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/sites/default/files/electricity_grid_pauyo_english.pdf|journal=Copenhagen Consensus Center|access-date=18 February 2019|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080409/https://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/sites/default/files/electricity_grid_pauyo_english.pdf|url-status=dead}}] There is no [[national electricity grid]].[Matthew Lucky, Katie Auth, Alexander Ochs, et al., Haiti Sustainable Energy Roadmap: Harnessing Domestic Energy Resources to Build an Affordable, Reliable, and Climate-Compatible Electricity System (Washington, DC: Worldwatch Institute, 2014).] The most common sources of energy are wood and charcoal. About 4 million metric tons of wood products are consumed yearly.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.usaid.gov/haiti/energy|title=Energy|date=16 August 2018|publisher=U.S. Agency for International Development|access-date=5 January 2019|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080412/https://www.usaid.gov/haiti/energy|url-status=dead}}] Like charcoal and wood, petroleum is also an important source of energy. Since Haiti cannot produce its own fuel, all fuel is imported. Yearly, about 691,000 tons of oil is imported into the country.[{{Cite news|url=https://www.vantbefinfo.com/energie-le-projet-delectrification-24-24-presente-aux-citoyens-haitiens/|title=Vant Bèf Info Énergie : le projet d'électrification 24/24 présenté aux Citoyens haïtiens -|date=31 October 2018|work=Vant Bèf Info|access-date=4 November 2018|language=fr-FR|archive-date=5 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105012118/https://www.vantbefinfo.com/energie-le-projet-delectrification-24-24-presente-aux-citoyens-haitiens/|url-status=dead}}]
===Personal income===
[[File:CapHaitienMarche.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|A market in [[Cap-Haïtien]]]]
Haiti suffers from a shortage of skilled labor, widespread unemployment, and underemployment. Most Haitians in the labor force have informal jobs. Three-quarters of the population lives on US$2 or less per day.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260118182544/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 January 2026|title=The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency|website=cia.gov|access-date=12 December 2016}}] Remittances from Haitians living abroad are the primary source of foreign exchange, equaling one-fifth (20%) of GDP and more than five times the earnings from exports as of 2012.[{{cite web|title=The World Factbook|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260118182544/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 January 2026|work=cia.gov|access-date=24 May 2015}}] In 2004, 80% or more of college graduates from Haiti were living abroad.[{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110423034022/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21109448~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html?cid=3001|archive-date=23 April 2011|url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21109448~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html?cid=3001|publisher=[[World Bank]]|title=Latin America Shouldn't Bet Everything On Remittances|date=31 October 2006|url-status=live}}]
Occasionally, families who are unable to care for children may send them to live with a wealthier family as a ''[[restavek]]'', or house servant. In return the family are supposed to ensure that the child is educated and provided with food and shelter; however, the system is open to abuse and has proved controversial, with some likening it to child slavery.[{{Cite journal|doi=10.1353/hrq.2014.0059|title=Toward Effective Intervention for Haiti's Former Child Slaves|journal=Human Rights Quarterly|volume=36|issue=4|pages=756–778|year=2014|last1=Kennedy|first1=C. L.|s2cid=144412249}}][{{Cite web|url=https://www.haiti-now.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Report-Haiti-Child-Domestic-Workers-31072015.pdf|title=Child Domestic Workers in Haiti 2014|last=Sommerfelt|first=Tone|date=October 2014|website=haiti-now.org|access-date=12 September 2019|archive-date=14 June 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250614113626/https://www.haiti-now.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Report-Haiti-Child-Domestic-Workers-31072015.pdf|url-status=dead}}]
===Real estate===
In rural areas, people often live in wooden huts with corrugated iron roofs. Outhouses are located in back of the huts. In Port-au-Prince, [[shantytowns]] surround the central city and go up the mountainsides.[{{Cite news|first=Nathalie|last=Gagnon-Joseph|title=On sports, treasure hunting, and life|url=https://bartonchronicle.com/a-week-in-haiti-on-sports-treasure-hunting-and-life/|newspaper=The Chronicle|location=Barton, Vermont|pages=28A, 29A|date=22 December 2015|access-date=29 December 2015|archive-date=1 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101024149/https://bartonchronicle.com/a-week-in-haiti-on-sports-treasure-hunting-and-life/|url-status=dead}}] The middle and upper classes live in suburbs, or in the central part of the bigger cities in apartments, where there is urban planning. Many of the houses they live in are like miniature fortresses, located behind walls embedded with metal spikes, barbed wire, broken glass, and sometimes all three. The houses have backup generators, because the electrical grid is unreliable. Some even have rooftop reservoirs for water.[{{cite web|url=http://www.tradeforum.org/Frager-Haiti-shortening-the-perfume-chain-to-become-world-number-one/|title=Frager, Haiti: shortening the perfume chain to become world number one|publisher=International Trade Centre|author=|access-date=12 April 2015|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912133256/https://www.tradeforum.org/Frager-Haiti-shortening-the-perfume-chain-to-become-world-number-one/|url-status=dead}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/mar/04/chanel-perfume-legislation-guerlain-loreal|title=Perfume manufacturers must cope with the scarcity of precious supplies|work=The Guardian|date=4 March 2014|access-date=12 April 2015}}][{{cite news|url=http://www.fida-pch.org/index.php?p=stories.View&story=11|title=FEATURE-Perfumers promote fair trade for Haiti's 'super-crop'|last=Adams|first=David|date=24 April 2014|work=Reuters UK|access-date=12 April 2015|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912111603/https://fida-pch.org/?p=stories.View&story=11|url-status=dead}}] Roughly 40–50% of Haitians work in the agricultural sector.[{{cite news|title=Feeding Haiti: A new menu|url=https://www.economist.com/news/americas/21579875-government-tries-load-up-plates-poorest-people-americas-new-menu|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|access-date=24 July 2013|date=22 June 2013}}]
Haiti exports crops such as [[mango]]es, [[cocoa bean|cacao]], [[coffee]], [[papaya]]s, [[mahogany]] nuts, [[spinach]], and [[watercress]].[{{cite web|url=http://www.ute.gouv.ht/caracol/images/stories/docs/environmental%20assessment%20of%20the%20usaidhaiti%20north%20park%20power%20project.pdf|title=Environmental Accessment of the USAID/Haiti North Park Power Project|page=23|publisher=USAID|year=2011|access-date=20 April 2015}}] Agricultural products constitute 6% of all exports.[{{cite web|url=https://www.indexmundi.com/haiti/economy_profile.html|title=Haiti Economy Profile 2016|access-date=14 December 2016}}]
===Currency===
The [[Haitian gourde]] (HTG) is the national currency. The "Haitian dollar" equates to 5 gourdes (''goud'').{{citation needed|date=November 2024}} The vast majority of the business sector and individuals will also accept US dollars, though at the outdoor markets gourdes may be preferred. Locals may refer to the USD as "dollar américain" (''dola ameriken'') or "dollar US" (pronounced ''oo-es'').[{{cite web|url=https://www.haitihub.com/download/Money-Matters-in-Haiti.pdf|title=All About Money: Gourdes, Dollars and Sense for Work and Life in Haiti|publisher=haitihub.com|access-date=16 February 2014}}]
===Tourism===
{{Main|Tourism in Haiti}}
[[File:Labadee.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Labadee]], a cruise ship destination]]
The tourism market in Haiti is undeveloped, and the government is heavily promoting this sector. Haiti has many of the features that attract tourists to other Caribbean destinations, such as white sand beaches, mountainous scenery and a year-round warm climate. However, the country's poor image overseas, at times exaggerated, has hampered the development of this sector.[{{cite web|url=http://www.traveldailynews.com/news/article/52973/best-western-international-targets-120|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130125201322/http://www.traveldailynews.com/news/article/52973/best-western-international-targets-120|url-status=dead|archive-date=25 January 2013|title=Best Western International targets 120 new hotel projects in 2013|publisher=Traveldailynews.com|access-date=24 July 2015}}][{{cite news|url=https://www.travelpulse.com/news/destinations/dispatch-good-times-in-haiti.html|title=Dispatch: Good Times in Haiti|last=Major|first=Brian|work=[[TravelPulse]]|date=9 December 2014}}] a five-star Royal Oasis hotel by Occidental Hotel and Resorts in [[Pétion-Ville]],[{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/caribbean/articles/Haiti-returns-to-the-tourist-map/|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/caribbean/articles/Haiti-returns-to-the-tourist-map/|archive-date=10 January 2022|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|title=Haiti returns to the tourist map|editor=Thomson, Ian|date=27 July 2014|work=The Telegraph|access-date=13 February 2017}}{{cbignore}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/travel/haiti-an-unlikely-location-for-luxury.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/26/travel/haiti-an-unlikely-location-for-luxury.html|archive-date=2 January 2022|url-access=limited|url-status=live|title=An Unlikely Location for Luxury|editor=Lall, Gay Nagle|date=22 May 2013|work=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=13 February 2017}}{{cbignore}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.travelweekly.com/Caribbean-Travel/Tourism-minister-plan-is-to-reveal-hidden-beauty-of-Haiti|title=Tourism minister's plan aims to reveal Haiti's 'hidden beauty'|editor=Myers, Gay Nagle|date=21 May 2013|work=Travel Weekly|access-date=13 February 2017}}] a four-star [[Marriott International|Marriott Hotel]] in the Turgeau area of Port-au-Prince[{{cite news|author=Barbara De Lollis|url=http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/post/2011/11/marriott-announces-first-hotel-in-haiti-port-au-prince/574010/1|title=Marriott announces first hotel in Haiti|publisher=Travel.usatoday.com|date=29 November 2011|access-date=24 July 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626145655/http://travel.usatoday.com/hotels/post/2011/11/marriott-announces-first-hotel-in-haiti-port-au-prince/574010/1|archive-date=26 June 2012}}] and other new hotel developments in Port-au-Prince, [[Les Cayes]], [[Cap-Haïtien]] and [[Jacmel]].{{citation needed|date=March 2014}}
===Caracol Industrial Park===
On 21 October 2012, Haitian President Michel Martelly, US Secretary of State [[Hillary Clinton]], Bill Clinton, [[Richard Branson]], [[Ben Stiller]] and [[Sean Penn]] inaugurated the {{convert|600|acre|ha|adj=on|order=flip|sigfig=2}} Caracol industrial park, the largest in the Caribbean.[{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/10/22/clinton-haiti-earthquake/1650763/|title=Clintons land in Haiti to showcase industrial park|work=[[USA Today]]|date=22 October 2012|access-date=11 January 2014}}] The project cost US$300 million and included a 10-megawatt [[power plant]], a water-treatment plant and worker housing.[{{cite news|url=https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/jake-johnston-haiti-earthquake-aid-caracol/|title=Outsourcing Haiti|work=[[Boston Review]]|date=16 January 2014|access-date=24 March 2024}}] The park was part of a "master plan" for Haiti's North and North-East departments, including the expansion of the [[Cap-Haïtien International Airport]] to accommodate large international flights, the construction of an international seaport in [[Fort-Liberté]] and the opening of the $50 million Roi Henri Christophe Campus of a new university in Limonade (near Cap-Haïtien) on 12 January 2012.[{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/haiti-clinton-caracol-idUSL1E8LM3BF20121022|title=Clintons preside at star-studded opening of Haitian industrial park|publisher=Reuters.com|date=22 October 2012|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=19 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130619104102/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/22/haiti-clinton-caracol-idUSL1E8LM3BF20121022|url-status=live}}]
In 2012, [[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]] believed the park had the potential to create as many as 65,000 jobs once fully developed.[{{cite web|url=http://www.uspolicy.be/headline/state-dept-fact-sheet-haitis-caracol-industrial-park|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150421070053/http://www.uspolicy.be/headline/state-dept-fact-sheet-haitis-caracol-industrial-park|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 April 2015|title=State Dept. Fact Sheet on Haiti's Caracol Industrial Park|publisher=US Policy|date=22 October 2012|access-date=20 April 2015}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.usaid.gov/haiti/caracol-industrial-park|title=Caracol Industrial Park|publisher=USAID|year=2014|access-date=20 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150219063300/http://www.usaid.gov/haiti/caracol-industrial-park|archive-date=19 February 2015|url-status=dead}}] South Korean clothing manufacturer [[Sae-A Trading Co. Ltd]], the park's only major tenant, created 5,000 permanent jobs out of the 20,000 it had projected and promised to build 5,000 houses yet only 750 homes had been built near Caracol by 2014.[{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/11/haiti-and-the-failed-promise-of-us-aid|title=Haiti and the failed promise of US aid|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=11 October 2019|access-date=24 March 2024}}] The US invested tens of millions of dollars into the port project but eventually abandoned it.[{{cite news|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/karlazabludovsky/haiti-industrial-park-caracol|title=These Haitians Were Children When A US-Funded Project Evicted Them|work=[[BuzzFeed]]|date=15 June 2022|access-date=24 March 2024}}] An audit by the [[United States Government Accountability Office]] uncovered that the port project lacked "staff with technical expertise in planning, construction, and oversight of a port" and revealed that USAID had not constructed a port anywhere since the 1970s.[{{cite web|url=https://www.dreamintv.com/single-post/2018/02/20/CRD-Wants-to-Build-Railway-that-Runs-Through-Haiti|title=CRD Wants to Build Railway that Runs Through Haiti|website=dreamintv.com|date=20 February 2018|access-date=17 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191117222328/https://www.dreamintv.com/single-post/2018/02/20/CRD-Wants-to-Build-Railway-that-Runs-Through-Haiti|archive-date=17 November 2019|url-status=dead}}]
====Airports====
[[File:Aerial view of PAP 2010-01-26 2.JPG|thumb|[[Toussaint Louverture International Airport]]]]
{{Main|List of airports in Haiti}}
[[Toussaint Louverture International Airport]], located {{convert|10|km|mi|0|abbr=off|spell=on|sp=us}} north-northeast of Port-au-Prince proper in the commune of [[Tabarre]], is the primary hub for entry and exit into the country. It has Haiti's main jetway, and along with [[Cap-Haïtien International Airport]] handles the vast majority of the country's international flights. Cities such as Jacmel, Jérémie, Les Cayes, and Port-de-Paix have smaller, less accessible airports that are serviced by regional airlines and private aircraft.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}
In 2013, plans for the development of an international airport on Île-à-Vache were introduced by the prime minister.[{{cite web|url=http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-9270-haiti-tourism-official-launch-of-project-tourist-destination-ile-a-vache.html|title=Haiti – Tourism : Official launch of project "Tourist destination Ile-à-Vache" – HaitiLibre.com : Haiti news 7/7|work=HaitiLibre.com}}]
In May 2024, the airport reopened following three months closure following violence, and is expected to help ease a shortage of medications and basic supplies.[{{Cite web|date=2024-05-20|title=Haiti's main international airport reopens nearly three months after gang violence forced it closed|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/haitis-international-airport-reopens-rcna153117|access-date=2024-05-26|website=NBC News|language=en}}][{{Cite web|title=Port-au-Prince: Haiti's main airport reopens after weeks of gang violence|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cndd394p7n2o|access-date=2024-05-26|website=www.bbc.com|date=21 May 2024 |language=en-GB}}]
====Bus service====
[[File:Tap tap public transportation Haiti.jpg|thumb|A "tap tap" bus in [[Port-Salut]]]]
[[Tap tap]] buses are colorfully painted buses or pick-up trucks that serve as shared taxis. The "tap tap" name comes from the sound of passengers tapping on the metal bus body to indicate they want off.[{{cite web|url=https://www.jansochor.com/photo-blog.aspx?id=tap-tap-haiti|title=Tap-Tap|access-date=29 January 2014}}] These vehicles for hire are often privately owned and extensively decorated. They follow fixed routes, do not leave until filled with passengers, and riders can usually disembark at any point. The decorations are a typically Haitian form of art.[{{cite web|url=http://www.unv.org/en/news-resources/news/doc/un-volunteer-takes-part.html|title=UN Volunteer takes part in art exhibition in Germany|access-date=29 January 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202105103/http://www.unv.org/en/news-resources/news/doc/un-volunteer-takes-part.html|archive-date=2 February 2014}}]
===Communications===
{{Main|Telecommunications in Haiti|Television in Haiti}}
Communications include the radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet. Haiti ranked last among North American countries in the World Economic Forum's Network Readiness Index (NRI){{snd}} an indicator for determining the development level of a country's information and communication technologies. Haiti ranked number 143 out of 148 overall in the 2014 NRI ranking, down from 141 in 2013.[{{cite web|url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/GITR/2014/GITR_OverallRanking_2014.pdf|title=NRI Overall Ranking 2014|publisher=World Economic Forum|access-date=28 June 2014}}]
=== Water supply and sanitation ===
{{Main|Water supply and sanitation in Haiti}}[{{Cite web |date=2023-07-31 |title=The Haiti Water Crisis {{!}} Healing Waters |url=https://healingwaters.org/the-haiti-water-crisis-what-you-should-know/ |access-date=2026-04-22 |language=en-US}}]Haiti faces key challenges in the water supply and sanitation sector. Access to these public services are very low, with 26% of Haitians having no access to improved water sources, and 7 out of 10 people lacking access to proper sanitation systems.[{{Cite web |title=Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) {{!}} UNICEF |url=https://www.unicef.org/haiti/en/water-sanitation-and-hygiene-wash |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=www.unicef.org |language=en}}] Quality is inadequate, as public institutions remain very weak despite foreign aid and the government's declared intent to strengthen the sector's institutions. Foreign and Haitian [[NGO]]s play an important role in the sector, especially in rural and urban slum areas.[{{Cite journal |last1=Gelting |first1=Richard |last2=Bliss |first2=Katherine |last3=Patrick |first3=Molly |last4=Lockhart |first4=Gabriella |last5=Handzel |first5=Thomas |date=October 2013 |title=Water, sanitation and hygiene in Haiti: past, present, and future |journal=The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene |volume=89 |issue=4 |pages=665–670 |doi=10.4269/ajtmh.13-0217 |issn=1476-1645 |pmc=3795096 |pmid=24106193}}]
==Demographics==
{{Main|Demographics of Haiti}}
[[File:Haiti-demographie.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Haiti's population (1800–2021)]]
In 2018, Haiti's population was estimated to be about 10,788,000.[{{cite web|url=http://www.unfpa.org/public/global/pid/227|title=New Haiti Census Shows Drastic Lack of Jobs, Education, Maternal Health Services|publisher=United Nations Population Fund|date=10 May 2006|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=14 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514113013/http://www.unfpa.org/public/global/pid/227|url-status=dead}}] In 1950, the first formal census gave a total population of 3.1 million.[{{cite web|url=https://countrystudies.us/haiti/21.htm|title=Haiti – Population|publisher=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]]|access-date=24 July 2013}}] Haiti averages approximately {{convert|350|/km2|/mi2|disp=preunit|people |people|sp=us}}, with its population concentrated most heavily in urban areas, coastal plains, and valleys.
[[File:EscombrosBelAir7.jpg|thumb|A street scene of Port-au-Princiens with a [[United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti|UN Peacekeeper of the Haiti mission]]]]
There is a large [[Haitian diaspora]] community, predominantly based in the [[Haitian Americans|United States]], [[Haitian Canadians|Canada]], and [[French Haitians|France]].[{{Cite web|last=Wiener|first=Charlotte|date=June 2025|title=Profiles of the Haitian diaspora in the Caribbean|url=https://obmica.org/images/Profiles_of_the_Haitian_diaspora_in_the_Caribbean.pdf|access-date=June 20, 2025|website=OBMICA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250625114002/https://obmica.org/images/Profiles_of_the_Haitian_diaspora_in_the_Caribbean.pdf|archive-date=2025-06-25}}] Many others of Haitian descent live abroad in the Dominican Republic, [[Haitian Cuban|Cuba]], the Bahamas, the French Antilles, the Turks and Caicos, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Brazil, Suriname and French Guiana. There were an estimated 881,500 people of Haitian ancestry in the United States in 2015,[{{cite web|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_10_1YR_B04003&prodType=table|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150118121537/http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_10_1YR_B04003&prodType=table|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 January 2015|title=American FactFinder – Results|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=14 December 2016}}] while in the Dominican Republic there were an estimated 800,000 in 2007.[{{cite web|url=http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215084725/http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37018|archive-date=15 February 2009|title=DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Deport Thy (Darker-Skinned) Neighbour|access-date=14 October 2008|last=Pina|first=Diógenes|publisher=Inter Press Service (IPS)|date=21 March 2007}}] There were 300,000 in Cuba in 2013,[[http://www.afrocubaweb.com/haiticuba.htm Haiti in Cuba] Retrieved 30 December 2013.] 100,000 in Canada in 2006,[{{cite web|url=http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/ethnic/pages/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=2&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=3&Display=All|title=Ethnic origins, 2006 counts, for Canada, provinces and territories – 20% sample data|access-date=26 April 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205060008/http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/highlights/ethnic/pages/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo=PR&Code=01&Table=2&Data=Count&StartRec=1&Sort=3&Display=All|archive-date=5 December 2008}}, Statistics Canada (2006).] 80,000 in Metropolitan France (2010),[{{cite news|url=https://gulfnews.com/news/world/other-world/france-suspends-expulsions-of-illegal-haitians-1.567985|title=France Suspends Expulsions Of Illegal Haitians|newspaper=Gulfnews.com|date=14 January 2010|access-date=24 July 2013}}] and up to 80,000 in the Bahamas (2009).[{{cite news|last=Davis|first=Nick|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8257660.stm|title=Bahamas outlook clouds for Haitians|work=BBC News|date=20 September 2009|access-date=24 July 2013}}] Many influential early American settlers and black freemen, including [[Jean Baptiste Point du Sable]] and [[W. E. B. Du Bois]], were of Haitian origin.[{{Harvnb|Kinzie|1856|p=190}}][{{Harvnb|Meehan|1963|p=445}}][{{cite book|last=Cohn|first=Scotti|title=It Happened in Chicago|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7627-5056-6|pages=2–4|publisher=Globe Pequot Press}}][Lewis, p. 18.{{incomplete short citation|date=February 2023}}]
In 2018, the life expectancy at birth was 63.66 years.[{{Cite web|title=Life expectancy at birth, total (years) – Haiti {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN?locations=HT|access-date=22 December 2020|website=data.worldbank.org}}]
===Largest cities===
{{Further|List of cities in Haiti}}{{unref section|date=January 2026}}{{Largest cities
| country = Haiti
| stat_ref = [https://www.geonames.org/HT/largest-cities-in-haiti.html geonames.org]
| list_by_pop =
| div_name = Department
| div_link =
| city_1 = Port-au-Prince|div_1 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_1 = 1,234,742| city_2 = Cap-Haïtien|div_2 = Nord (Haitian department){{!}}Nord|pop_2 = 534,815| city_3 = Carrefour, Ouest{{!}}Carrefour ({{abbr|in Metro P.P.|The city is located inside the Port-au-Prince's metropolitan area}})|div_3 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_3 = 442,156| city_4 = Delmas, Ouest{{!}}Delmas ({{abbr|in Metro P.P.|The city is located inside the Port-au-Prince's metropolitan area}})|div_4 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_4 = 382,920| city_5 = Pétion-Ville{{!}}Pétion-Ville ({{abbr|in Metro P.P.|The city is located inside the Port-au-Prince's metropolitan area}})|div_5 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_5 = 283,052
| city_6 = Port-de-Paix|div_6 = Nord-Ouest (department){{!}}Nord-Ouest|pop_6 = 250,000
| city_7 = Croix-des-Bouquets{{!}}Croix des Bouquets ({{abbr|in Metro P.P.|The city is located inside the Port-au-Prince's metropolitan area}})|div_7 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_7 = 229,127
| city_8 = Jacmel|div_8 = Sud-Est (department){{!}}Sud-Est|pop_8 = 137,966
| city_9 = Léogâne|div_9 = Ouest (department){{!}}Ouest|pop_9 = 134,190
| city_10 = Les Cayes|div_10 = Sud (department){{!}}Sud|pop_10 = 125,799
}}
===Racial discrimination===
{{Main|Gens de couleur}}
Under colonial rule, [[Mulatto|Haitian mulattoes]] were generally privileged above the black majority, though they possessed fewer rights than the white population. Following the country's independence, they became the nation's social elite. Numerous leaders throughout Haiti's history have been mulattoes. During this time, the enslaved persons and the [[affranchi]]s were given limited opportunities toward education, income, and occupations, but even after gaining independence, the social structure remains a legacy today as the disparity between the upper and lower classes have not been reformed significantly since the colonial days.[{{cite journal|jstor=2574763|title=Class Structure and Class Conflict in Haitian Society|first1=Roland|last1=Wingfield|first2=Vernon J.|last2=Parenton|date=1965|journal=Social Forces|volume=43|issue=3|pages=338–347|doi=10.2307/2574763}}] Making up 5% of the nation's population, mulattoes have retained their preeminence, evident in the political, economic, social and cultural hierarchy in Haiti.[{{cite web|last=Smucker|first=Glenn R|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field%28DOCID+ht0033%29|title=A Country Study: Haiti; The Upper Class|editor=Haggerty, Richard A.|publisher=Library of Congress Federal Research Division|date=December 1989}}] As a result, the elite class today consists of a small group of influential people who are generally light in color.[{{cite journal|jstor=2769747|title=Caste and Class in Haiti|first=John|last=Lobb|date=2018|journal=American Journal of Sociology|volume=46|issue=1|pages=23–34|doi=10.1086/218523|s2cid=144100302}}]
===Languages===
The two official languages of Haiti are [[French language|French]] and [[Haitian Creole]]. French is the principal written and administratively authorized language (as well as the main language of the press) and is spoken by 42% of [[Haitians]].[{{cite book|title=La langue française dans le monde 2014|date=2014|publisher=Nathan|isbn=978-2-09-882654-0|url=http://www.francophonie.org/Langue-Francaise-2014/projet/Rapport-OIF-2014.pdf|access-date=20 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150412002239/http://www.francophonie.org/Langue-Francaise-2014/projet/Rapport-OIF-2014.pdf|archive-date=12 April 2015|url-status=dead}}][À ce propos, voir l'essai ''Prétendus Créolismes : le couteau dans l'igname'', Jean-Robert Léonidas, Cidihca, Montréal 1995] It is spoken by all educated Haitians, is the medium of instruction in most schools, and is used in the business sector. It is also used in ceremonial events such as weddings, graduations and church Masses. Haiti is one of two independent nations in the Americas (along with Canada) to designate French as an [[official language]]; the other French-speaking areas are all [[French overseas departments and territories|overseas]] ''[[Departments of France|départements]]'', or ''[[Overseas collectivity|collectivités]]'', of France, such as [[French Guiana]]. Haitian Creole is spoken by nearly all of the Haitian population. French, the base language for Haitian Creole, is popular among the Haitian elite and upper classes. French is also popular in the business sector, and to a far lesser degree, English due to [[Haiti–United States relations|American influence]]. Spanish is spoken by some Haitians who live along the [[Dominican Republic–Haiti border|Haitian-Dominican border]].[{{Cite web|url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-haiti.html|title=What Languages Are Spoken in Haiti?|date=29 July 2019}}] English and Spanish may also be spoken by Haitian deportees from the United States and various Latin American countries. Overall, about 90–95% of Haitians only speak Haitian Creole and French fluently, with over half only knowing Creole.[{{Cite web|url=https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/schools-teaching-creole-instead-french-rise-haiti/|title=Schools Teaching in Creole Instead of French on the Rise in Haiti|date=13 November 2019}}]
Haitian Creole,[{{cite journal|url=http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|title=Creole: The National Language of Haiti|last=Valdman|first=Albert|journal=Footsteps|volume=2|issue=4|pages=36–39|publisher=Indiana University Creole Institute|access-date=6 August 2008|archive-date=26 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626233455/http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|url-status=dead}}] locally called ''Kreyòl'',[{{Cite web|title=Haitian Creole|url=https://celt.indiana.edu/portal/haitian-creole/index.html|access-date=4 October 2022|website=[[Indiana University]] – Center for Language Technology|language=en-US}}] has recently undergone standardization and is spoken by virtually the entire population.[{{cite web|url=http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|title=Creole: National Language of Haiti|last=Valdman|first=Albert|publisher=[[Indiana University]]|access-date=11 January 2014|archive-date=26 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626233455/http://www.indiana.edu/~creole/creolenatllangofhaiti.html|url-status=dead}}] One of the [[French-based creole languages]], Haitian Creole has a vocabulary overwhelmingly derived from French, but its grammar resembles that of some West African languages. It also has influences from [[Taíno|Taino]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], and [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]].[{{cite web|last=Bonenfant|first=Jacques L.|title=History of Haitian-Creole: From Pidgin to Lingua Franca and English Influence on the Language|url=http://www.fmuniv.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/History_of_haitian_review_of_higher_education.pdf|editor=Haggerty, Richard A.|publisher=Library of Congress Federal Research Division|date=December 1989|access-date=1 January 2014|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924014030/http://www.fmuniv.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/History_of_haitian_review_of_higher_education.pdf|url-status=dead}}] Haitian Creole is related to the other French creoles, and in particular to the [[Antillean Creole|Antillean]] and [[Louisiana Creole French|Louisiana Creole]] variants.{{citation needed|date=September 2019}}
===Religion===
{{Main|Religion in Haiti}}
{{Pie chart
|thumb = right
|caption = Religion in Haiti according to the [[Pew Research Center]] (2010)[{{cite web|url=http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/haiti#/?affiliations_religion_id=11&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All%20Countries+Countries&restrictions_year=2015|title=Religions in Haiti – PEW-GRF|website=globalreligiousfutures.org|access-date=25 February 2018|archive-date=29 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929181606/http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/haiti#/?affiliations_religion_id=11&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All%20Countries+Countries&restrictions_year=2015|url-status=dead}}]
|label1 = Catholicism
|value1 = 56.8
|color1 = purple
|label2 = Protestantism
|value2 = 29.6
|color2 = Blue
|label3 = Unaffiliated
|value3 = 10.6
|color3 = gray
|label4 = Other
|value4 = 3
|color4 = Red
}}
The 2018 [[CIA World Factbook]] reported that 55% of Haitians were [[Roman Catholicism in Haiti|Catholics]] and 29% were [[Protestantism in Haiti|Protestants]] (Baptist 15.4%, Pentecostal 7.9%, [[Seventh-day Adventist]] 3%, Methodist 1.5%, other 0.7%). Other sources put the Protestant population higher, suggesting that it might have formed one-third of the population in 2001.[{{cite book|last1=Rey|first1=Terry|last2=Stepick|first2=Alex|title=Crossing the Water and Keeping the Faith: Haitian Religion in Miami|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=40SIdXeUEhUC&pg=PA6|year=2013|publisher=NYU Press|isbn=978-1-4798-2077-1|page=6|quote=With no indications of any subsequent decline in Protestant affiliation either in Port-au-Prince or the countryside, one could reasonably estimate that today Haiti is already more than one-third Protestant}}] Like other countries in the neighboring Latin American region, Haiti has witnessed a general Protestant expansion, which is largely [[Evangelical Protestant|Evangelical]] and [[Pentecostal]] in nature.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2014/november/sorry-pope-francis-protestants-catholics-latin-america-pew.html|title=Sorry, Pope Francis: Protestants Are Converting Catholics Across Latin America|first=Morgan|last=Lee|website=News & Reporting|date=13 November 2014}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2014/11/13/religion-in-latin-america/|title=Religion in Latin America|date=13 November 2014}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2006/10/05/overview-pentecostalism-in-latin-america/|title=Overview: Pentecostalism in Latin America|date=5 October 2006}}] Haitian [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]] [[Chibly Langlois]] is president of the National Bishops Conference of the Catholic Church.[{{Cite web |date=2024-11-23 |title=Cardinal Chibly Langlois |url=https://collegeofcardinalsreport.com/cardinals/chibly-langlois/ |access-date=2025-09-07 |website=The College of Cardinals Report |language=en-US}}]
[[Haitian vodou|Vodou]], a religion with West African roots similar to those of Cuba and Brazil, is formally practiced by 2.1% of the population; however, it is estimated that 50–80% of Haitians incorporate some elements of Vodou belief or practices into their religion, particularly with Catholicism. This reflects Vodou's colonial origins, when enslaved persons were obliged to disguise their traditional [[loa]] (''lwa''), or spirits, as Catholic saints, as part of a process called [[syncretism]]. As such, it is difficult to estimate the number of Vodouists in Haiti,[{{cite book|last=Blier|first=Suzanne Preston|editor-first=Cosentino|editor-last=Donald J.|title=Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou|publisher=Los Angeles: UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History|year=1995|pages=61–87|chapter=Vodun: West African Roots of Vodou|isbn=978-0-930741-47-1}}][{{cite book|chapter-url=https://digitalcollections.wesleyan.edu/object/relifp-46|chapter=The Madonna of 115th St. Revisited: Vodou and Haitian Catholicism in the Age of Transnationalism|last=McAlister|first=Elizabeth|editor1-first=S.|editor1-last=Warner|title=Gatherings in Diaspora|location=Philadelphia|publisher=Temple Univ. Press|isbn=978-1-56639-614-1|year=1998}}] especially given the legacy of historic persecution and misrepresentation in popular media and culture, as well as modern stigmatization among segments of the growing Protestant population. Nonetheless, Vodou was officially recognized by the Haitian government in 2003.[{{Cite web |date=2024-04-02 |title=In Haiti, Young People Are Driving a Vodou Revival |url=https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/haiti-young-people-driving-vodou-revival/ |access-date=2025-05-06 |website=Global Press Journal |language=en-US}}][{{Cite web |date=2021-09-29 |title=Haitians Turn to Vodou to Treat Mental Illness |url=https://globalpressjournal.com/americas/haiti/haitians-turn-vodou-treat-mental-illness/ |access-date=2025-05-06 |website=Global Press Journal |language=en-US}}]
Reflecting the ubiquity of Vodou culture and beliefs, while many Catholics and Protestants in Haiti denounce Vodou as ''[[Theistic Satanism|devil worship]]'', they do not deny the power or existence of its spirits; rather, they are regarded as "evil" and "[[Satanism|satanic]]" adversaries that require intervention through [[Christian prayer]]. Protestants view Catholic veneration of saints as [[idolatry|idol worship]], and some Protestants would often destroy statues and other Catholic paraphernalia.[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UT0nAAAAQBAJ|title=Crossing the Water and Keeping the Faith Haitian Religion in Miami|editor=Rey, Terry|editor2=Stepick, Alex|page=197|year=2013|publisher=NYU Press|isbn=9780814777084|access-date=16 April 2021}}]
Minority religions in Haiti include [[Islam in Haiti|Islam]], [[Bahá'í Faith in Haiti|Bahá'í Faith]], [[History of the Jews in Haiti|Judaism]], and [[Buddhism]].[{{cite web|url=http://menfp.gouv.ht/|title=Ministry of Education|access-date=21 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181022224755/http://menfp.gouv.ht/|archive-date=22 October 2018|url-status=dead}}] is provided by universities and other public and private institutions.[{{cite news|title=Education in Haiti; Primary Education|url=http://www.buildingwithbooks.org/intra/Intl_Programs/profile_Haiti.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080323105543/http://www.buildingwithbooks.org/intra/Intl_Programs/profile_Haiti.html|archive-date=23 March 2008|access-date=15 November 2007}}]
More than 80% of primary schools are privately managed by nongovernmental organizations, churches, communities, and for-profit operators, with minimal government oversight.[{{cite news|title=Education: Overview|url=http://www.usaid.gov/Haiti/education|work=United States Agency for International Development|access-date=30 May 2015|archive-date=12 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220912080417/https://www.usaid.gov/haiti/education|url-status=dead}}] According to the 2013 Millennium Development Goals Report, Haiti has steadily boosted net enrollment rate in primary education from 47% in 1993 to 88% in 2011, achieving equal participation of boys and girls in education.[{{cite news|title=Haiti boosts health and education in the past decade, says new UNDP report|url=http://www.latinamerica.undp.org/content/rblac/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2014/06/25/haiti-makes-progress-towards-reducing-poverty-and-boosts-health-and-education-in-the-past-decade-says-new-undp-report.html|work=United Nations Development Programme|access-date=30 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150531031932/http://www.latinamerica.undp.org/content/rblac/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2014/06/25/haiti-makes-progress-towards-reducing-poverty-and-boosts-health-and-education-in-the-past-decade-says-new-undp-report.html|archive-date=31 May 2015|url-status=dead}}] Charity organizations, including [[Food for the Poor]] and [[Haitian Health Foundation]], are building schools for children and providing necessary school supplies.
According to UNESCO, Haiti's adult literacy rate was 61.7% in 2022.[{{Cite web |date=October 2022 |title=Country Profile |url=https://www.uil.unesco.org/sites/default/files/medias/files/2022/11/gal_country_profiles_haiti.pdf?hub=90 |access-date=June 20, 2025 |website=UNESCO}}]
Many reformers have advocated the creation of a free, public and universal education system for all primary school-age students in Haiti. The [[Inter-American Development Bank]] estimates that the government will need at least US$3 billion to create an adequately funded system.[{{cite web|first=Paul|last=Franz|url=http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/untold-stories/improving-access-education-haiti|title=Improving Access to Education in Haiti|publisher=Pulitzercenter.org|date=25 October 2010|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=14 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130914013009/http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/untold-stories/improving-access-education-haiti|url-status=dead}}]
Upon successful graduation of secondary school, students may continue into [[higher education]]. The higher education schools include the [[University of Haiti]]. There are also [[List of medical schools in the Caribbean|medical schools]] and [[Legal education|law schools]] offered at both the University of Haiti and abroad. [[Brown University]] is cooperating with L'Hôpital Saint-Damien to coordinate a [[pediatrics|pediatric health care]] curriculum.[{{cite web|url=https://brown.edu/initiatives/global-health/haiti/medical-education-and-leadership-development-project-meld|title=Haiti|access-date=21 October 2014}}]
===Health===
{{Main|Health in Haiti}}
{{As of|2012}}, 60% of children under the age of 10 were [[Vaccine|vaccinated]],[{{cite web|url=http://www.ksl.com/?sid=20314561|title=Haiti to vaccinate 95 percent of children under 10|website=KSL.com|access-date=21 October 2014}}][{{Cite web|url=https://www.paho.org/en|title=PAHO/WHO | Pan American Health Organization|website=www.paho.org|accessdate=22 November 2025}}] compared to 93–95% in other countries.[{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6341a1.htm|title=Vaccination Coverage Among Children in Kindergarten — United States, 2013–14 School Year|access-date=14 December 2016}}] Recently there have been mass vaccination campaigns claiming to vaccinate as many as 91% of a target population against specific diseases (measles and rubella in this case).[{{cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/globalhealth/stories/haitian_children.html|title=CDC Global Health – Stories – 5 things CDC has done to help rebuild Haiti's immunization system since the 2010 earthquake|access-date=14 December 2016}}] Most people have no transportation or access to [[List of hospitals in Haiti|Haitian hospitals]].[{{cite journal|url=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-01-14/haiti-survivors-face-outbreaks-of-diarrhea-measles-malaria.html|title=Haiti Survivors Face Outbreaks of Diarrhea|journal=BusinessWeek|date=14 January 2010}}{{dead link|date=April 2023|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}]
The [[World Health Organization]] cites [[diarrhea]]l diseases, [[HIV/AIDS]], [[meningitis]], and respiratory infections as common causes of death.[{{cite news|first=Madison|last=Park|url=https://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/01/13/haiti.earthquake.medical.risks/|title=Haiti earthquake could trigger possible medical 'perfect storm|publisher=cnn.com|date=13 January 2010|access-date=31 July 2014}}] Ninety percent of children suffer from [[waterborne disease]]s and [[intestinal parasite]]s.[{{cite web|url=https://www.ipsnews.net/2008/11/environment-haiti-cant-face-more-defeats/|title=Haiti Can't Face More Defeats|last=Leahy|first=Stephen|publisher=Ipsnews.net|date=13 November 2008|access-date=24 July 2013}}] HIV infection is found in 1.71% of Haiti's population (est. 2015).[{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260118182544/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 January 2026|title=The World Factbook: HAITI. Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency, 12 Jan. 2017. Web. 20 Feb. 2017. — Central Intelligence Agency|website=cia.gov|date=22 September 2021}}] Per a 2017 report, incidence of [[tuberculosis]] is the highest in the region with an estimated 200 cases per 100,000 people.[{{Cite journal|last1=Masurand|first1=Jack|last2=Koenig|first2=Serena|last3=Julma|first3=Pierrot|last4=Ocheretina|first4=Oksana|last5=Durán-Mendicuti|first5=Maria|last6=Fitzgerald|first6=Daniel|last7=Pape|first7=Jean|date=30 May 2017|title=Active Tuberculosis Case Finding in Haiti|journal=The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene|volume=97|issue=2|pages=433–435|doi=10.4269/ajtmh.16-0674|pmid=28722608|pmc=5544073}}] Approximately 30,000 Haitians fall ill with [[malaria]] each year.[{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/haiti-and-dominican-republic-look-to-eradicate-malaria|title=Haiti and Dominican Republic Look to Eradicate Malaria|publisher=Foxnews.com|date=8 October 2009|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111118082049/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,562682,00.html|archive-date=18 November 2011|url-status=live}}]
Roughly 75% of households lack running water. Unsafe water, along with inadequate housing and unsanitary living conditions, contributes to the high incidence of infectious diseases. There is a chronic shortage of health care personnel and hospitals lack resources, a situation that became readily apparent after the January 2010 earthquake.[{{cite web|url=http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA528274|title=The Geology of Haiti: An Annotated Bibliography of Haiti's Geology, Geography and Earth Science|author1=Robert Lee Hadden|author2=Steven G. Minson|page=10|year=2010|access-date=24 July 2013|archive-date=11 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111034200/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a528274.pdf|url-status=dead}}] The [[infant mortality rate]] in 2019 was 48.2 deaths per 1,000 live births, compared to 5.6 per 1,000 in the United States.[{{Cite web|title=Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) – Haiti, United States {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.IMRT.IN?locations=HT-US|access-date=26 April 2021|website=data.worldbank.org}}]
After the 2010 earthquake, [[Partners In Health]] founded the [[Hôpital Universitaire de Mirebalais]], the largest [[Solar power|solar-powered]] hospital in the world.[{{cite web|url=http://www.pih.org/blog/solar-powered-hospital-in-haiti-yields-sustainable-savings|title=Solar-Powered Hospital in Haiti Yields Sustainable Savings|access-date=21 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210114940/http://www.pih.org/blog/solar-powered-hospital-in-haiti-yields-sustainable-savings|archive-date=10 February 2017|url-status=dead}}][{{cite web|url=http://www.engineering.com/ElectronicsDesign/ElectronicsDesignArticles/ArticleID/5883/Solar-Powered-Hospital.aspx|title=Solar Powered Hospital|editor=Lombardo, Tom|publisher=Engineering.com|date=23 June 2013|access-date=18 April 2015|archive-date=7 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807112157/https://www.engineering.com/ElectronicsDesign/ElectronicsDesignArticles/ArticleID/5883/Solar-Powered-Hospital.aspx|url-status=dead}}]
==Culture==
{{Main|Culture of Haiti}}
Haiti has a lasting and unique cultural identity, blending traditional French and African customs, mixed with sizable acquirements from the Spanish and Indigenous cultures.[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=giQaoQz8N0AC&pg=PA13|title=A Taste of Haiti|last=Yurnet-Thomas|first=Mirta|pages=13–15|year=2002|publisher=Hippocrene Books|isbn=978-0-7818-0998-6|access-date=18 June 2015}}]
===National holidays and festivals===
{{Further|Public holidays in Haiti}}
The [[Haitian Carnival]] has been one of the most popular carnivals in the Caribbean. In 2010, the government decided to stage the event in a different city outside Port-au-Prince every year.[{{cite web|url=http://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-5009-haiti-culture-more-than-300-000-people-celebrated-the-carnival-2012-in-les-cayes.html|title=More than 300,000 people celebrated the Carnival 2012 in Les Cayes|publisher=Haitilibre.com|date=22 February 2012|access-date=24 July 2013}}][{{cite web|url=https://magazine.nd.edu/news/47009-global-doc-kanaval/|title=Global Doc: Kanaval|last=DeGennaro|first=Vincent|date=19 March 2014|access-date=23 November 2014}}] The National Carnival follows the popular Jacmel Carnival, which takes place a week earlier in February or March.[{{cite web|title=Rara {{!}} Haitian Music|url=http://www.haitianmusic.net/haitian-folk-music/rara|website=Haitian Music|date=17 April 2012|access-date=17 November 2017|archive-date=17 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171117122814/http://www.haitianmusic.net/haitian-folk-music/rara|url-status=dead}}][{{Cite web|url=https://music.si.edu/story/rara-vodou-power-and-performance|title=Rara: Vodou, Power, and Performance|date=8 March 2016|website=Smithsonian Music|language=en|access-date=14 April 2020}}]
===Architecture===
[[File:Sans-Souci Palace, National History Park, Haiti.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|Sans-Souci Palace, National History Park, Haiti]]
{{See also|List of World Heritage Sites in the Caribbean}}
Monuments include the [[Sans-Souci Palace]] and the [[Citadelle Laferrière]], inscribed as a [[World Heritage Site]] in 1982.[{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/180|title=National History Park – Citadel, Sans the great Souci, Ramiers|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=23 January 2010}}] Situated in the Northern [[Massif du Nord]], in the [[National History Park]], the structures date from the early 19th century.[{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/579|title=Heritage in Haiti|date=20 January 2010|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=23 January 2010}}] The buildings were among the first built after Haiti's independence from France.
The [[Citadelle Laferrière]], the largest fortress in the Americas, is located in northern Haiti. It was built between 1805 and 1820 and is today referred to by some Haitians as the [[eighth wonder of the world]].[{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&dat=19780129&id=BN4hAAAAIBAJ&pg=5745,4456684|title=Haiti's Citadelle Described As 8th Wonder of the World|publisher=United Press International|page=40|date=29 January 1978|via=Reading Eagle|access-date=21 October 2014}}]
The [[Institut de Sauvegarde du Patrimoine National|Institute for the Protection of National Heritage]] has preserved 33 historical monuments and the historic center of Cap-Haïtien.[{{cite web|url=http://www.haiti.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=121&Itemid=90|title=Institut de Sauvegarde du Patrimoine National|publisher=Haiti.org|access-date=24 July 2013}}]
[[Jacmel]], a colonial city that was tentatively accepted as a World Heritage Site, was extensively damaged by the 2010 earthquake.[{{cite journal|title=MUPANAH and the Promotion of Historical and Cultural Values|doi=10.1111/j.1468-0033.2011.01744.x|volume=62|issue=4|journal=Museum International|pages=39–45|year=2010|last1=Paret|first1=Robert|s2cid=142632278}}]
===Art===
[[File:Swearing-in ceremony of Diaspora GwètòDe by Konfederasyon Nasyonal Vodou Ayisyen 09.jpg|thumb|Swearing-in ceremony of Haitian Diaspora GwètòDe]]
[[Haitian art]] is distinctive, particularly through its paintings and sculptures.[{{cite web|url=http://globalfaithinaction.org/haiti-culture-and-sports/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120427211956/http://globalfaithinaction.org/haiti-culture-and-sports/|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 April 2012|title=Haiti – Culture And Sports|last=Onofre|first=Alejandro Guevara|access-date=2 September 2014}}][{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/haiti|title=In Haiti, Art Remains a Solid Cornerstone|last=Legro|first=Tom|publisher=[[PBS]]|date=11 January 2011}}] Brilliant colors, [[Naïve art|naïve]] perspectives, and sly humor characterize Haitian art. Frequent subjects in Haitian art include big, foods, landscapes, market activities, jungle animals, rituals, dances, and gods. As a result of a deep history and strong African ties, symbols take on great meaning within Haitian society. Many artists cluster in 'schools' of painting, such as the Cap-Haïtien school, which features depictions of daily life in the city, the Jacmel School, which reflects the steep mountains and bays of that coastal town, or the Saint-Soleil School, which is characterized by abstracted human forms and is heavily influenced by Vodou symbolism.{{citation needed|date=April 2014}}
In the 1920s the ''indigéniste'' movement gained international acclaim, with its expressionist paintings inspired by Haiti's culture and African roots. Notable painters of this movement include [[Hector Hyppolite]], Philomé Oban and [[Préfète Duffaut]].[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 36.] Some notable artists of more recent times include [[Edouard Duval-Carrié]], Frantz Zéphirin, Leroy Exil, [[Prosper Pierre Louis]] and [[Louisiane Saint Fleurant]].[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide – Haiti'', p. 37.]
===Music and dance===
[[Music of Haiti|Haitian music]] combines a wide range of influences drawn from the many people who have settled here. It reflects French, African and Spanish elements and others who have inhabited Hispaniola, and minor native Taino influences. Styles of music unique to Haitian culture include music derived from [[Haitian Vodou|Vodou]] ceremonial traditions, [[Rara music|Rara]] parading music, [[Twoubadou]] ''ballads'', [[mini-jazz]] rock bands, [[Rasin]] movement, [[Haitian hip hop|Hip hop]] kreyòl, [[méringue]],[{{cite web|url=http://www.afropop.org/radio/radio_program/ID/692/Music%20and%20the%20Story%20of%20Haiti|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071113022326/http://www.afropop.org/radio/radio_program/ID/692/Music%20and%20the%20Story%20of%20Haiti|archive-date=13 November 2007|title=Music and the Story of Haiti|work=Afropop Worldwide }}] and [[compas]]. Youth attend parties at nightclubs called ''[[Nightlife|discos]]'', and attend ''Bal'' (ball, as in a formal dance).
''[[Compas]] (konpa)''[{{cite web|url=http://www.heritagekonpa.com/The%20Haitian%20Music%20Billboard.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100210081147/http://www.heritagekonpa.com/The%20Haitian%20Music%20Billboard.htm|archive-date=10 February 2010|title=Haitian music billboard|date=10 February 2010|access-date=24 July 2013}}] is a complex, ever-changing music that arose from [[Rhythm in Sub-Saharan Africa|African rhythms]] and European ballroom dancing, mixed with Haiti's bourgeois culture. It is a refined music, with [[méringue]] as its basic rhythm. Haiti had no recorded music until 1937 when [[Jazz Guignard]] was recorded non-commercially.[{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gwEL9mUcVA8C&pg=PA23|title=A Day for the Hunter, a Day for the Prey: Popular Music and Power in Haiti|last=Averill|first=Gage|year=1997|page=23|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0-226-03291-7|access-date=20 April 2015}}]
===Literature===
{{Main|Haitian literature}}
Haiti has produced poetry, novels, and plays of international recognition. The [[Saint-Domingue|French colonial experience]] established the French language as the venue of culture and prestige, and since then it has dominated the literary circles and the literary production. However, since the 18th century there has been a sustained effort to write in [[Haitian Creole]]. The recognition of Creole as an official language has led to an expansion of novels, poems, and plays in Creole.[{{Cite book|last=Nzengou-Tayo|first=Marie-José|chapter=Chapter 7: Creole and French in Haitian Literature|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4xbGzLuBvWwC&pg=PA153|title=The Haitian Creole Language: History, Structure, Use, and Education|editor1-first=Arthur K.|editor1-last=Spears|editor2-first=Carole M.|editor2-last=Berotte Joseph|language=en|publisher=Lexington Books|pages=153–176|isbn=978-0-7391-7221-6|date=2012}}] In 1975, [[Franketienne]] was the first to break with the French tradition in fiction with the publication of ''Dezafi'', the first novel written entirely in Haitian Creole.[{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ewyPMi4WZPAC|title=Frankétienne and Rewriting: A Work in Progress|last=Douglas|first=Rachel|publisher=Lexington Books|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7391-3635-5|pages=50–60}}] Other well known Haitian authors include [[Jean Price-Mars]], [[Jacques Roumain]], [[Jacques Stephen Alexis]], [[Marie Vieux-Chauvet]], Pierre Clitandre, [[René Depestre]], [[Edwidge Danticat]], [[Lyonel Trouillot]] and [[Dany Laferrière]].
===Folklore and mythology===
{{Main|Haitian mythology}}
Haiti is known for its folklore traditions.[{{cite book|last=Munro|first=Martin|title=Exile and Post-1946 Haitian Literature: Alexis, Depestre, Ollivier, Laferrière, Danticat|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JC-m0n2yww8C&pg=PA14|date=2013|publisher=Liverpool University Press|isbn=978-1-84631-854-2|pages=14–}}] Much of this is rooted in [[Haitian Vodou]] tradition. Belief in [[zombies]] is also common.[Clammer, Paul (2016), ''Bradt Travel Guide - Haiti'', p. 35.] Other folkloric creatures include the [[Soucouyant|lougarou]].[{{cite web|url=http://www.creolemadeeasy.com/cmejom/free/recipes/127-pumpkin-soup-soup-joumou.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140521034622/http://www.creolemadeeasy.com/cmejom/free/recipes/127-pumpkin-soup-soup-joumou.html|archive-date=21 May 2014|title=Pumpkin Soup – Soup Joumou|publisher=Creolemadeeasy.com|access-date=22 May 2014}}]
===Sports===
{{Main|Culture of Haiti#Sports}}
[[File:Haiti national football team training in Port-au-Prince 2004-08-16 2.jpg|thumb|[[Haiti national football team]] training in Port-au-Prince, 2004]]
[[Association football|Football]] (soccer) is the most popular sport in Haiti with hundreds of small clubs competing at the local level. Basketball and baseball are growing in popularity.[{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/blue-jays-helping-bring-baseball-to-haiti/c-31222026|title=Blue Jays helping bring baseball to Haiti|first=Chris|last=Toman|date=13 May 2012|publisher=[[Major League Baseball]]}}][{{cite book|title=Haiti in Focus: A Guide to the People, Politics, and Culture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XCi9jFR6v1oC&pg=PA82|last=Arthur|first=Charles|publisher=Interlink Pub Group Inc|pages=82–83|isbn=978-1-56656-359-8|year=2002}}] [[Stade Sylvio Cator]] is the [[multi-purpose stadium]] in Port-au-Prince, currently used mostly for [[association football]] matches. In [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]], the [[Haiti national football team]] were only the second [[Caribbean]] team to make the [[FIFA World Cup|World Cup]], returned to the tournament in [[2026 FIFA World Cup|2026]] after 52 years of absence. The national team won the [[2007 Caribbean Nations Cup]].[{{cite web|url=https://www.caribbeanandco.com/history-caribbean-teams-fifa-world-cup/|title=History of Caribbean teams in the FIFA World Cup|access-date=2 September 2014}}] The [[Haiti women's national football team|women's team]] also made the [[FIFA Women's World Cup|FIFA World Cup]] in [[2023 FIFA Women's World Cup|2023.]][{{Cite web |title='Breath of fresh air': Haiti qualify for first Women's World Cup |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2023/2/22/haiti-qualify-for-first-womens-football-world-cup |access-date=2025-06-20 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}]
Haiti has participated in the [[Haiti at the Olympics|Olympic Games]] since the year 1900 and won a number of medals. Haitian footballer [[Joe Gaetjens]] played for the [[United States men's national soccer team|United States national team]] in the [[1950 FIFA World Cup]], scoring the winning goal in the 1–0 upset of [[England national football team|England]].[{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2010/jun/10/world-cup-2010-usa-1950-england|title=World Cup 2010: How the USA's 1950 amateurs upset England and the odds|author=Ewen MacAskill|newspaper=The Guardian|date=10 June 2010}}]
==See also==
{{Portal|Haiti|Countries|Caribbean|North America
}}
* [[Outline of Haiti]]
* ''[[Madan Sara]]''
* [[Devastations of Osorio]]
{{Clear}}
==Notes==
{{notelist|45em}}
==References==
{{Reflist}}
===Sources===
* {{Cite web |publisher=Constitute Project |translator-last1=Carmen Gress |translator-first1=Maria del |translator-last2=Ruchti |translator-first2=Jefri J. |title=Haiti 1987 (rev. 2012) |ref={{Harvid|Constitution of Haiti}} |url=https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Haiti_2012 }}
* {{cite book|last=Heinl|first=Robert|title=Written in Blood: The History of the Haitian People|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780761802303|url-access=registration|publisher=University Press of America|location=Lantham, Md.|year=1996}}
* {{cite book|last=Kinzie|first=Juliette|title=Wau-Bun, the "Early Day" in the North-West|year=1856|publisher=Derby and Jackson|author-link=Juliette Augusta Magill Kinzie|url=https://archive.org/details/waubunearlydayin00kinz|access-date=25 August 2010}}
* {{cite journal|last=Meehan|first=Thomas A.|title=Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, the First Chicagoan|journal=Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society|year=1963|volume=56|issue=3|pages=439–453|jstor=40190620}}
*{{Cite book |last=Metz |first=Helen Chapin |title=Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies |series=Area handbook series |publisher=Federal Research Division, Library of Congress |location=Washington, D.C. |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-8444-1044-9 |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/2001023524/ }}
==Further reading==
{{EB1911 poster|Haiti}}
* Arthur, Charles. ''Haiti in Focus: A Guide to the People, Politics, and Culture''. Interlink Publishing Group (2002). {{ISBN|1-56656-359-3}}.
* Dayan, Colin. ''Haiti, History, and the Gods''. University of California Press (1998).
* Ferrer, Ada. ''Freedom's Mirror: Cuba and Haiti in the Age of Revolution.'' New York: Cambridge University Press, 2014.
* {{Cite journal|last=Geggus|first=David|date=1997|title=The Naming of Haiti|journal=NWIG: New West Indian Guide / Nieuwe West-Indische Gids|volume=71|issue=1/2|pages=43–68|doi=10.1163/13822373-90002615|jstor=41849817|issn=1382-2373|doi-access=free|ref=none}}
* Girard, Philippe. ''Haiti: The Tumultuous History'' (New York: Palgrave, September 2010).
* Hadden, Robert Lee and Steven G. Minson. 2010. [http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA528274 The Geology of Haiti: An Annotated Bibliography of Haiti's Geology, Geography and Earth Science] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111034200/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a528274.pdf |date=11 January 2020 }}. US Army Corps of Engineers, Army Geospatial Center. July 2010.
* [[Kovats-Bernat, J. Christopher]]. ''Sleeping Rough in Port-au-Prince: An Ethnography of Street Children and Violence in Haiti''. University Press of Florida (2008). {{ISBN|978-0-8130-3302-0}}.
* Prichard, Hesketh. ''Where Black Rules White: A Journey Across and About Hayti''. These are exact reproductions of a book published before 1923: (Nabu Press, {{ISBN|978-1-146-67652-6}}, 5 March 2010); (Wermod and Wermod Publishing Group, {{ISBN|978-0-9561835-8-3}}, 15 October 2012).
* Robinson, Randall. ''[[An Unbroken Agony: Haiti, From Revolution to the Kidnapping of a President]]''. Basic Civitas (2007). {{ISBN|0-465-07050-7}}.
* Wilentz, Amy. ''The Rainy Season: Haiti Since Duvalier''. Simon & Schuster (1990). {{ISBN|0-671-70628-4}}.
* Marquis, John. ''Papa Doc: Portrait of a Haitian Tyrant'' (LMH Publishing, 2007)
* {{Cite book |last=Robert James |first=Cyril Lionel |author-link=C. L. R. James |title=The Black Jacobins: Toussaint l'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution |title-link=The Black Jacobins |publisher=[[Secker & Warburg]] |year=1938}}
==External links==
{{Sister project links|voy=Haiti}}
'''Government'''
* {{in lang|fr}} [http://primature.gouv.ht/ Prime Minister of Haiti] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150417051738/http://primature.gouv.ht/ |date=17 April 2015 }}
* {{in lang|fr}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20180808161437/http://parlementhaitien.ht/ Haitian Parliament] (archived 8 August 2018)
* {{in lang|fr}} [https://mae.gouv.ht/ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs]
* {{in lang|fr}} [https://www.mspp.gouv.ht/ Ministère de la Santé Publique et de la Population]
'''General information'''
* [https://visithaiti.com/ Visit Haiti] Official Tourism Website
* {{cite EB9 |wstitle = Hayti |volume= XI |last= Champlin |first= John Denison |author-link= John Denison Champlin Jr. | pages=543–546 |short=1}}
* {{Cite EB1911 |wstitle= Haiti |volume = 12 |last= |first= |author-link= |pages=824–827 |short=1}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20260118182544/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/haiti/ Haiti]. ''[[The World Factbook]]''. [[Central Intelligence Agency]].
*{{Wikiatlas}}
* [https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1202772.stm Haiti profile] from the [[BBC News]].
* [http://www.gvsu.edu/haitiwater Web Site about Safe and Sustainable Water Solutions for Haiti]
{{Haiti topics}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Related articles
|list =
{{Departments of Haiti}}
{{Countries of North America}}
{{Organization of American States}}
{{La Francophonie}}
{{Caribbean Community (CARICOM)|state=collapsed}}
}}
{{Portal bar|Haiti|Countries|Caribbean|North America}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|19|00|N|72|25|W|display=title}}
[[Category:Haiti| ]]
[[Category:Countries in North America]]
[[Category:Countries in the Caribbean]]
[[Category:Countries and territories where French is an official language]]
[[Category:Former Spanish colonies]]
[[Category:Former French colonies]]
[[Category:French Caribbean]]
[[Category:Former military dictatorships]]
[[Category:Greater Antilles]]
[[Category:Island countries]]
[[Category:Least developed countries]]
[[Category:Member states of the Caribbean Community]]
[[Category:Member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie]]
[[Category:Member states of the United Nations]]
[[Category:Republics]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1804]]
[[Category:Small Island Developing States]]
[[Category:1804 establishments in North America]]
[[Category:1625 establishments in New France]]
[[Category:1804 disestablishments in the French colonial empire]]
[[Category:17th-century disestablishments in New Spain]]