12/01/2015
REVERSING THE TIDE: LET’S OVERTURN POVERTY IN HAITI.
The results are in, and Haiti is likely to be the only poor country left in the world by 2035. According to Bill Gates’ 2014 annual letter, published by the Bill Gates Foundation, by 2035 all of the poor countries around the world “would have joined the rank of middle-income nation, with the possible exception of Haiti (annualletter.gatesfoundation.org).” Such a prediction begs the question why must Haiti be the only possible exception? To answer the question correctly we would have to delve into a series of historical events that would probably astonish us all. However, what is certain is that more than 80% of the Haitian population live in poverty-meaning they live on less than two (2) US dollars a day (http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/haiti/overview ); see also Haitipartners.org, www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2012/09/14/10-poorest-counrties-in-world/, and www.un.or/esa/socdev/rwss/docs/2010/chapter2.pdf). Such level of impoverishment questions our humanity. Unable to feed and educate their children, many parents are forced to send them to live with or work for relatives or strangers thereby fostering the culture of RESTAVEK. You can imagine the treatments that these children are often subjected to. Can we continue to allow such conditions to exist? Are we not our brothers’ keepers to a certain extent? No one is obligated to provide his brothers with all of life’s necessities. However, teaching them on how to procure life’s necessities on their own is at least our calling. Shaataauh Marbres, S.A. has answered the call and would like you to join the movement to reverse the tide by training and educating the people of Haiti and ultimately overturn poverty in Haiti. JOIN THE MOVEMENT AND TOGETHER WILL CHANGE THE COURSE OF HAITI.
The impact of a magnitude 7.0 earthquake on January 12, 2010 affected Haiti's capital and nearby towns and killed up to 230,000 people. Damages and losses were evaluated at around US$8 billion or 120 percent of GDP.