Just What is a Madan Sara

The most critical defining characteristic of the sara is her ability to leverage capital, knowledge, and relathioships to obtain and move produce at lower than wholesale prices.

Value Chain Study: Cacao, Cashews, Castor Oil, & Breadfruit

This document presents research on four value chains in Haiti: cacao, cashews, breadfruit and castor bean oil (ricin). The research was conducted in the context of the ILO project FOPRODER (2015-2020), that works through cooperatives and associations in Haiti to provide professional training and promote resiliency of value chains. Arguably the most important information inRead More

HAITIAN MANGOES EXPORTED TO THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

A big part of the irony of the rocket like growth of the Dominican mango export industry over the past 30 years (read this post) is that this had not only happened while Haiti’s exporters had failed to increase their own exports or to effectively organize the mango industry: it was arguably launched with theRead More

The Haitian Boutik (‘neighborhood convenience store’)

This post is useful for a) the description of the formal versus informal market chains in Haiti and b) data from several random boutik (neighborhood stores) surveys. You will find information on the estimated number of residences per boutik, the use of credit, distribution channels, and inventories. Data is drawn from studies we conductedRead More

Part II: Market and Boutik Focus Groups, Plateau Central, Haiti: Product Inventories, Market Size, Pricing & Turnover Rates

This is Part II of a two part market study (see Part I for quantitative survey) commissioned by the Clinton Foundation and facilitated by TechnoServ Haiti, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) dedicated to “business solutions to poverty.” The actual research was carried out under the auspices of the Haiti based research company, Socio-Dig. The research wasRead More

Part I: Market and Boutik Survey, Plateau Central, Haiti: Product Inventories, Market Size, Pricing & Turnover Rates

This Part 1 of a two part market study (see Part II for focus groups) commissioned by the Clinton Foundation, facilitated by TechnoServ Haiti, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) dedicated to “business solutions to poverty.” The research conducted by Socio-Dig, a Haiti-based research company. The study was designed to assess the availability and pricing of aRead More

Market Assessment for Skills in the Agribusiness and Construction Sectors in the Saint Marc Region

The research presented in this report was commissioned by the RTI project, Local Enterprise and Value Chain Enhancement Project (LEVE), part of a USAID–USDA program working with the Haitian Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Rural Development (MARNDR) to rehabilitate three vocational schools. The goal was to assess the technical skills in demand in St.Read More

Beans and Corn Value Chains in Gressier, Haiti

This is a draft report, a Pre-crisis Market Mapping and Analysis (PCMMA) Training and Market Assessment Facilitation Beans and Corn Gressier, Haiti, that was conducted with Practical Action Consulting of the UK, on behalf of the GOAL, an Irish NGO. The research in the field was conducted with the support of Socio-Dig, a Haiti-based research company.Read More

Understanding the Impact of Emigration in Haiti

In the 1960s and 1970s the typical gran neg or gran dam (Patron) in provincial Haiti was an individual belonging to a large family that, a) had more and better land than most people in the region, b) a better education, c) urban connections, but, d) was heavily invested in land, agricultural production, livestock rearingRead More

Unpublished EMMA Field Report for Post-Earthquake Emergency Response (Jacmel, Haiti)

The objective of this study of Haiti’s Southwest Department was, 1) expand techniques for value chain development in conflict- and disaster-affected environments with the goal of helping design early responses for ensuring survival (market systems could supply food and essential items or services related to priority survival needs), 2) provide useful information for current humanitarianRead More

Markets, Trade and Traders