Haiti in crisis: A national consultation on reform priorities and financing options for accelerated SDG achievement

Haiti's economy is heavily dependent on external sources of funding, particularly Official Development Assistance (ODA). The lack of funding and autonomous revenue generated in the country is a major scourge and is preventing the much-needed structural transformation of the national economy. In addition, ODA has fallen in recent years, and remittances from the diaspora, which are a major source of income, are not being injected into productive sectors.

The United Nations Integrated National Financing Frameworks (INFFs) provide a framework for financing national sustainable development priorities and the SDGs at the country level.

Under the INFF process, Haiti will develop a comprehensive, ambitious, and well-informed financing plan fully aligned with SDGs; an updated SDG strategy based on realistic finance mobilisation scenarios; institutionalised capacity to efficiently deliver the SDGs; and build a strong national partnership on delivering strategies, action plans and reforms initiated under the INFF process.

Resource mobilisation, in terms of enhanced access to financing not only for the government but also from private sector investors, will be geared toward both basic service provision and sustainable growth.

Through the project "Haiti in crisis: A national consultation on reform priorities and financing options for accelerated SDG achievement", UNCTAD and UNDP will ensure a broad-based national consultation in defining strategies, priorities and goals, as well as regular exchange with other key partners from the public, private, non-governmental, financial sector, and academia.

The final result of this programme will be an ambitious yet realistic financing action plan for Haiti, in support of an objectively reprioritized SDG strategy that includes a convincing reform agenda and is fully endorsed through a national consultation process.

With high poverty and incapacity to satisfy basic needs and social service access, this programme thus carries additional importance as a possible contributor to renewed cohesion building in Haiti.

UNCTAD will focus on analysing the various sources of finance and their potential, whether external resources or those generated by the national economy. Among others, the focus will be on identifying and measuring Haiti's productive capacities using UNCTAD’s Productive Capacity Index (PCI).

Intended outcomes:

National ownership for strategy, action plan and reforms initiated or flagged under the project.
A comprehensive, ambitious and well-informed financing plan fully aligned with SDGs.
An updated SDG Strategy based on realistic finance mobilisation scenarios.
Institutionalised capacity to efficiently deliver the agreed SDG – including its financing.

Activities:

Study on Haiti national productive capacities gap assessment (NPCGA).
Study on potential for Haiti to benefit from and exploit innovative sources of development finance.
Study on Haiti, financing the SDGs, production, and export potentials.
Study on harnessing fishery resources for socioeconomic development: Lessons for Angola and Haiti.
A Development Finance Assessment (DFA) report.
Organization of national consultations with key stakeholders.

Link to the SDGs:

Financing mobilisation, in terms of enhanced access to financing not only for Government but also for - and from - private sector investors and for citizens at large will be geared in a balanced manner to both basic needs and sustainable growth-related SDGs principally contributing to SDGs 1, 2, and 8.