Above: an industrial park in Haiti (UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The implementation of integrated economic zones could create as many as 380,000 jobs and 100,000 home sites in Haiti in the next two decades, according to a report from the International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group.

The report, “Integrated Economic Zones in Haiti,” found that with public and private sector support, as well as global action, the zones have the potential to boost job creation and reconstruction in the country. The report was funded by the government of the Netherlands.

“Creating large sustainable employment is a top priority for the government of Haiti,” said Wilson Laleau, Haiti’s Minister of Commerce and Industry. “We believe integrated economic zones offer a unique opportunity to reduce transaction costs and stimulate critical job-creating investment around the country.”

The IFC’s findings were presented at a workshop with Haitian officials.

“The government is committed to joining with the private sector and the international community to develop the regulatory framework and pilot the next large development under a public-private partnership approach,” Laleau said.