Les causes économiques et socio-politiques du passage de la régionalisation à la départementalisation en Haïti

Abstract

List of Tables ix List of Figures xi Preface xiii 1. Politics and Economics 1 2. Making a Living 65 3. Food 123 4. Water 165 5. Shelter 189 6. Schooling 235 7. Credit 279 8. Conclusion: The Devil's Hand . 299 Appendices 311 References . 349 Index ,. 365 xiii xiv Political Economy in Haitileast, sludge required no disaggregation. The search could only move upwards in a methodical process of aggregation, from the outputs about which I was rapidly becoming expert to its source inputs, from waste to food and water, from food and water to the indi.viduals and families that consumed them, from consumers to producers, and from consumers and producers to the makers of policies, programs, and projects that gave consumption and production their particular characteristics.Another thought was that the path to understanding would take a long, long time to cover. The distance between the base of a cesspool and the basis of policy, though generally less than three meters in physical terms, was immense in explanatory terms.My travel over this path is now well into its second decade. From time to time I would break the trip, take stock of progress, and then write about what I learned. The dissertation was done in 1977. The United States Agency for International Development circulated an abridged version of it in 1980. Thereafter I wrote a number of articles, chapters, and technical reports that advanced different themes contained in the original work. Although incorporating much of the earlier writing and adding new material, this book is not in any sense the culmination of a voyage ofdiscovery. It is simply another step along the way.Coming up on this and previous stations, I have had the honor to benefit from the support and advice of many colleagues. Irving Louis Horowitz was instrumental in convincing me that the various fragments of writing I shared with him several years ago constituted embryonic components of what could eventually become a useful book. He followed the course of my work from the first draft to the last, and provided me with constant encouragement and inspiration through difficult moments.