Coronavirus: in Haiti, the textile sector must restart

Text by: Amélie Baron Follow

With only 41 cases of coronavirus and three deaths recorded as of April 15, Haiti is still relatively untouched by the pandemic. However, since the state was unable to support its citizens financially, the restrictive measures which had been decided were revised downwards. The textile factories will be able to resume their activities.

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From our correspondent in Port-au-Prince,

For companies in the textile subcontracting sector in Haiti, the time to resume work is coming. The coronavirus pandemic, if it has rather spared the country - 41 contaminations and three deaths according to the last official report published Wednesday, April 15 -, nevertheless requires caution and special measures.

Social distancing obliges, only 30% of the employees can be simultaneously present in the factories. Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe has therefore announced that a staff rotation system will be introduced to allow workers to work in 15-day periods.

► Read also: Haiti: the difficult application of anti-Covid-19 measures

Vital recovery for 60,000 workers

The President of the Republic, Jovenel Moïse, had ordered the factories closed on March 19, when the first two cases of Covid-19 had been detected in the country. This recovery, scheduled for Monday, April 20, is vital for the nearly 60,000 workers in the sector, because there is no unemployment insurance in Haiti.

The employer sector assures that it is difficult to pay compensation to compensate for this month of lost activity. The state has demanded from factories the free production of a million masks . And this already represents a large cost.

► Read also: Faced with the absent State, Haiti is trying to organize

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