Suriname - Haiti Observer Blog

Alex Jospitre, the Haitian Consul General in Suriname, was part of the "Unity among Believers" event. This major event saw the coming together of 4 Haitian churches and over ten pastors and other religious authorities in what was a ceremony for the integration of Haitians living in Suriname. Strengthening the ties for the Haitian community in Suriname is a cause that Consul Jospitre is passionate about. In his address, he commended the religious leaders, among others, for their steps in bringing forth this desired outcome through their acceptance of the cause.

Suriname is a northeastern Atlantic country, off the coast of South America. Its history is much the same of its Caribbean neighbors, so much so, it is considered a Caribbean country and is also a part of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). As the smallest South American sovereign state, Suriname has a population of just over half a million.

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Haiti President Michel Martelly flew to both Guyana and Suriname on a State visit March 22, 2013.

On his stop in Guyana, he sat down with Head of State, Donald Ramotar. They spoke on topics ranging from bi-lateral cooperation to agrarian issues, eco-tourism, trading, education, and food shortages. President Martelly also promoted many investment opportunities developed for Haiti's reconstruction post the 2010 earthquake.

After, Martelly flew to Suriname where he was greeted by President Désiré Bouterse with a military ceremony. During their sit-down, Martelly conversed with Bouterse about domestic rice production in Haiti, and CARICOM's CARIFESTA. Suriname is the event host for 2013's celebration, and Haiti will participate, offering music, national cuisine, arts and crafts, and dance performances.

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The past few years have been very promising for the island country of Haiti, despite the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that occurred about three years ago. It is actually one of the fastest growing economies in the region, thanks to the recent efforts of the Haitian government and the international community.

In a recent report published by the United Nation's Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Haiti will be the leading and fastest-growing economy in the Caribbean in terms of GDP growth which is projected to increase by 6% by the year 2013. It was also supposed to be at the number one spot for 2012 with an initial estimate of 6% growth earlier in the year, but was decreased to a 2.5% growth by the ECLAC, as well as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), due to the bad effects of the major storms that hit the country this past year. Back in 2011, Haiti's GDP grew by 5.6%.

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