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• GDP: US$4.3 billion (2006).
• Main exports: Light manufactured goods, coffee, oils and mangos.
• Main imports: Food products and manufactured goods.
• Main trade partners: USA and EU.
• Main exports: Light manufactured goods, coffee, oils and mangos.
• Main imports: Food products and manufactured goods.
• Main trade partners: USA and EU.
Economy
Haiti’s average annual income of about US$500 per head is the lowest in the western hemisphere; moreover, vast disparities exist between the incomes of rich and poor. The World Bank estimates that 85% of the people live below the absolute poverty line.
Two-thirds of the employed population work in agriculture, mainly in the coffee plantations which generate 25% of Haiti’s export earnings, although these have suffered from periodic droughts and persistently low world prices. Sugar cane, sweet potatoes, cocoa and sisal are also grown for export.
The mining industry extracts marble, limestone and clay; there are also unexploited deposits of copper, silver and gold. The rest of the manufacturing sector involves food processing, metal products and textiles. Tourism, once promising, has all but vanished thanks to the country’s chronic political instability.
Haiti’s problems are so intractable that even after repeated, large injections of foreign aid and an IMF-approved economic plan, the economy remains stubbornly inert. The appalling state of the country’s infrastructure has much to do with this. The economy did however grow by 2.5% in 2006.
Haiti joined the Caribbean trading bloc CARICOM as a provisional member in 1997 and became a full member in 2002.
Two-thirds of the employed population work in agriculture, mainly in the coffee plantations which generate 25% of Haiti’s export earnings, although these have suffered from periodic droughts and persistently low world prices. Sugar cane, sweet potatoes, cocoa and sisal are also grown for export.
The mining industry extracts marble, limestone and clay; there are also unexploited deposits of copper, silver and gold. The rest of the manufacturing sector involves food processing, metal products and textiles. Tourism, once promising, has all but vanished thanks to the country’s chronic political instability.
Haiti’s problems are so intractable that even after repeated, large injections of foreign aid and an IMF-approved economic plan, the economy remains stubbornly inert. The appalling state of the country’s infrastructure has much to do with this. The economy did however grow by 2.5% in 2006.
Haiti joined the Caribbean trading bloc CARICOM as a provisional member in 1997 and became a full member in 2002.
Business Etiquette
It is usual to wear a suit for initial or formal calls. The British Trade Correspondent can put visitors in touch with a reliable English–French translator if required. Business visitors are generally entertained to lunch or dinner by their agents or important customers and should return invitations either at their hotel or a restaurant. Best time to visit is November to March.
Office hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1600.
Office hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1600.
Business Contacts
Chambre Haïtienne de Commerce et d’Industrie
BP 982, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Tel: 222 2475 or 223 0786.
Chambre Franco-Haïtienne de Commerce et d’Industrie
Suite 327, Holiday Inn Plaza, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Tel: 223 8404 or 8846 or 8424.
BP 982, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Tel: 222 2475 or 223 0786.
Chambre Franco-Haïtienne de Commerce et d’Industrie
Suite 327, Holiday Inn Plaza, Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Tel: 223 8404 or 8846 or 8424.