Work @ Fonkoze

Work at Fonkoze is both interesting and very confusing. When I was hired for the job, I was very informally told that I would be working to help Fonkoze develop some sort of catastrophic insurance plan for hurricanes through coordination with a Haitian insurance company called AIC. I was also supposed to be working on Fonkoze’s life insurance program for its loan clients. In reality, I had very little idea what my role would be before I got here. Since I’ve been here, however, it doesn’t seem like my role has gotten any clearer.

Fonkoze, like many non-profits in the developing world, moves at a snail’s pace in terms of communication and getting things done. I spent practically the whole first day trying to determine who my boss is (which is still not fully clear) and where I should sit in the three-story office building. After three days, I still don’t have internet access at the office and the cell phone they gave me does not work. I’ve come to the conclusion that most likely I will be my own boss and just have to build off the very vague ideas the organization gave me before I came. I’m basically going to do a lot of independent research via the internet to try to gather data on catastrophic insurance and develop some sort of model for Fonkoze. We’ll see if they like the end product! I’ve always been someone who enjoys structure, especially in jobs, but I’m sure this newfound independence will be hugely beneficial to my future work.

In my last blog post, I promised some interesting stories about tear gas—and I’ve received quite a few messages from people concerned. It probably was a bad idea of me to not give all the details right off the bat. Anyways, as many of you might know, Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and is very politically unstable. There have been a number of coups over the last decades and their first democratically elected President is currently in exile (sadly thanks in part to the powerful interests of the United States). Needless to say, politics is a hot issue down here and protests arise in the streets daily. Unfortunately the last two days have seen these protests move right in front of Fonkoze. Yesterday, I believe college students were protesting the Haitian minimum wage and the occupation of UN troops here in Port-au-Prince. The students began throwing rocks at UN troops who then fired tear gas into the crowd. It sounds bad, but don’t worry!!! Fonkoze is very secure with walls about 20 feet high around the entire complex and armed guards at the gates. We were not at risk from the protests, but the tear gas did waft into the offices so we just had to shut all doors and windows until it passed. It’s certainly unlike anything I’ve ever seen before and it can be a little uneasy if you think too much about it, but I’m cautious when I go outside and I have not felt threatened at all since I’ve been here. Moral of the story (especially to Mom): DON’T WORRY!

I’ll leave the stories of my Haitian friends (and how they practically live in my house) for another day. I’m learning more and more Kreyol everyday and I’m enjoying the new experiences here. The mountains and ocean are beautiful. I’ve been healthy since I’ve gotten here and the food is delicious! Couldn’t ask for much more! Keep me in your thoughts and prayers.