Spread of Covid-19 on the rise in Haiti, all departments affected

Text by: Stefanie Schüler Follow

The evolution of the coronavirus on Haitian national territory worries experts but also citizens, 27 new cases of contamination and one death were recorded in 24 hours. As of Saturday, 31 new infections and 3 deaths have been announced in one day by the Haitian Ministry of Health. Interview with Gotson Pierre, editor-in-chief of the Haitian online agency Alterpresse.

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RFI: The spread of the new coronavirus has seen an unexpected increase in recent days in Haiti.

Gotson Pierre: Indeed, we did not expect this increase. Because the public debate concerning the coronavirus in Haiti has brought up in recent weeks also factors that would be favorable to our country. From the start, there has been a lot of talk about the sun, which is very hot and intense here, for example. We also noticed that the opening of a country to foreign countries was an aggravating factor in the import and spread of the virus. It has played out in many countries, including the neighboring Dominican Republic, where the number of cases is extremely high in comparison with Haiti. Without forgetting the use of natural medicine, highlighted in Haiti but also within the diaspora. So people thought that with all of its elements we could decrease or even stop the spread. But suddenly, at the end of last week, there was an increase in new infections. Before, we were told one or two cases. Now we are told twenty new cases, thirty new cases in 24 hours. It is a disturbing development.

What is particularly worrying is the fact that the virus now circulates throughout the territory and affects all departments. The department of Grand'Anse announced these first two cases of Covid-19 two days ago. And it is no longer only the big cities that register patients but also more rural areas. Like this patient tested positive for Covid-19 in the commune of Chantal.

Chantal is a small town and the first to be affected by the virus in the South department. There have already been suspected cases in Chantal but no confirmed cases. The announcement of the first coronavirus patient in Chantal stirred the population of this commune. And the authorities struggled to manage the situation. We spoke yesterday with an assessor mayor of Chantal. He told us that residents were shocked by the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in their community. It is also striking to note that the population does not feel a real care. On the one hand, the local authorities were not well informed. They themselves tried to find out who the infected person was. And on the other hand, the measures that were taken afterwards left something to be desired, according to these local authorities. But as soon as there is a proven case, people are very afraid.

Exactly how does the population react?

People may think - and it is paradoxical - that this invisible disease will not reach their home, as soon as there is a proven case it is panic. Yesterday was therefore panic to Chantal. An attempt was made to burn the person tested positive for Covid-19 and threats. It quickly becomes an uncontrollable situation.

It should also be noted that community transmission of the virus is increasing. The trend is now doubling of community transmission cases compared to imported cases of the epidemic. Community contaminations are progressing very very quickly. However - this is a factor which, I think, will further promote the spread of the virus here - so far there are Haitians who believe that the disease does not exist! If you talk to people, some will tell you that this is again a government invention. People are asking all the more questions that a new delivery of medical equipment ordered by the government coincides with the announcement of the increase in patients. People are trying to find the connection between these two elements. They wonder if there is a manipulation. So the problem of mistrust also plays a role in the spread of the virus, as does the lack of capacity to take charge at the commune level, as in Chantal, precisely.

How exactly do these care difficulties manifest themselves?

In Chantal, there is no real health facility. Nor is there an ongoing presence of public health. A medical team therefore arrived from Port-au-Prince to take a sample from the suspect. With this sample, the team went back to Port-au-Prince, since screening is carried out centrally in a laboratory in the capital. During this process, it was a source of concern for the mayor we spoke to, the patient and his family members going about their business in the community. Neither the authorities nor the population can therefore know where the spread of the disease is in Chantal. And this uncertainty is terrible. Arrangements are only made after the result of the screening test is announced. The patient will remain uncontrolled in residential isolation, since there is no authority present on site capable of ensuring compliance with his quarantine. Or the patient should leave his house to go to the main town of the department, Les Cayes. The whole protocol is not clear at the moment. I am told, for example, of quarantine establishments that have not yet been completed. In my opinion, these are all factors that will encourage an acceleration of community contamination.

There are not only health concerns in Haiti but also those concerning the potentially dramatic economic consequences for the country. In one of his articles Alterpresse talks today about the example of Cité Soleil.

Yes, we are talking about it more and more. There are health risks but there is also the risk of starvation. Famine, the word may sound strong. But according to specialists and residents of certain areas, this risk is very real. Because on the one hand, local agricultural production is in sharp decline. In many parts of the country, the spring campaign has been compromised, as Haiti faces a severe drought at the same time. There was very little rain. The harvest planned within a month or two will not be there.

And on the other hand, the importation into Haiti of basic necessities has decreased. A number of products cannot be found. For example, products from the Dominican Republic. Even if the transport of goods is authorized despite the border closure due to coronavirus, the Dominican Republic had to reduce its production due to the health crisis.

Then, in Haiti, the population has no money to buy. The prices of basic necessities increase while at the same time the gourd continues to lose its value. Today a US dollar is worth 103 or 104 gourdes. All this economic situation suggests that within two three months the situation will become very difficult. Not just at Cité Soleil. But also in neighborhoods like Martissant where the local authorities alert us to the same situation: access to food more and more limited.

The Haitian government has announced the distribution of food kits. But concretely, this aid has so far not reached these sectors in question, according to local authorities. Another factor which worries in these districts is that of the lack of sanitation. The canals have not been cleaned, the refuse has not been removed. The inhabitants live in an environment where insalubrity reigns. Not to mention the problem of insecurity. These are also areas in the hands of gangs. For the moment, the state cannot do anything about it. There are announcements. But it does not exceed the limit of ads.

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