In the months since the devastating earthquake which struck Haiti in early 2010, a massive reconstruction project has been underway to aid in the country’s recovery. Much of the country’s communication network was damaged as a result of the earthquake and great efforts are now being made to enhance the communication access in Haiti.

Internet access in Haiti has alsways been relatively low. Latest statistics from the International Telecommunication Union show only 8.4 internet users per 100 persons in Haiti in 2010. This figure dramatically fell in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake but has been steadily increasing since then and this trend is due to continue.

Many plans have been put in place and are now being implemented to provide internet access to both rural and urban areas of Haiti. In May 2010 the Vietnamese military-owned telecommunications company Viettel was selected as the successful bidder to acquire a 60% share in Teleco, with the Haitian government retaining 40%. The resulting entity was named Natcom. Part of Viettel’s bid included a commitment to build a 2000km fibre optic cable to remote areas of the country. In addition to this, in February 2011 Digicel Jamaica was granted a licence allowing it to connect undersea fibre optic cables to Haiti. Upon completion of both these projects, the internet accessing capabilities of Haiti should be greatly enhanced.

Furthermore, Inveneo, a firm who specialise in providing ICT services in the developing world have recently launched their Haiti Rural Broadband initiative. This initiative aims to bring reliable and sustainable broadband access to six regions and twenty population centres in Haiti which have little, if any broadband access. This should ensure that both rural and urban areas of Haiti have access to the internet.

Tags: broadband, fibre optic, haiti, internet, inveneo