Reconstructing Haiti

Economists weigh in on how to get Haiti back on its feet.

Paul Collier, an economist at Oxford University, is actively involved in planning the reconstruction of Haiti as an advisor to several international agencies. Among other things, Collier suggests light manufacturing and export zones as a potential model for economic development in Haiti.

But perhaps the most controversial part of his plan is who would actually implement it. Collier argues that the Haitian government is in no position to take charge. As a result, the best way forward is to create a temporary development authority with wide powers to govern, under the auspices of the UN or an ad hoc group (US, Canada, EU or Brazil among others), spear-headed by an international figure like Bill Clinton. (or something along these lines...)

http://www.focal.ca/pdf/haiticollier.pdf

Paul Romer, an economist at Stanford University, has recently been advocating the development of charter cities, where people can live and work more freely, in an environment defined by better institutions and rules. To learn more about this revolutionary idea see ( http://www.ted.com/talks/paul_romer.html) and (http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/29/can-charter-cities-change-the-world-a-qa-with-paul-romer/).

Haiti is a clear example of how misgovernance affects development so not surprisingly, the possibility of creating a charter city in Haiti became an appealing idea for some! Paul is now quelling the enthusiasm over this possibility given the level of devastation the country faces.

http://chartercities.org/blog/98/charter-cities-versus-humanitarian-military-occupation

Michael Clemens, an economist at the Center for Global Development, considers immigration policy in the West to be the best non-interventionist approach to rebuilding Haiti:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/22/AR2010012202274.html

These are three great examples of how simple economic ideas can inform policy and yet, more often than not, the ultimate challenge still lies in the political economy of policy implementation. Let's stay tuned because the debate is just starting...

A great suggestion by Stefan for those who are interested in the topic:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/opinion/17rebuildhaiti.html