Dupuy: Aid to Haiti Absolves State of Responsibilities

Alex Dupuy, Class of 1958 Distinguish Professor of Sociology, discusses for CNN the ‘vicious cycle’ that has gripped Haiti: the country’s dependency on foreign and charitable aid has become so pronounced over the years that it has restrained the Haitian government from facing up to long-term solutions to basic problems. Because so much of the Haitian economy – and in a post-disaster situation, the current rebuilding – is shaped by foreign and NGO aid-driven agendas, educated Haitianoften decide to leave the county for better economic conditions rather than to work for the government or Haitian-owned and based businesses.

Dupuy has been invited by UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to a conference on March 24 at their Paris headquarters titled: “Refonder le tissue social, culturel, et intellectuel d’Haiti” (Rebuilding the Social, Cultural, and Intellectual Fabric of Haiti). The conference is a preparation for another conference between the Haitian government and their major international aid donors that will be held a week later in New York City.