In a scheduled inspection tour of infrastructure projects across Haiti’s Far North region, Marcelin Aubourg, Haiti’s Minister of Agriculture, led a cross-agency government delegation to assess on-site progress of rural road rehabilitation works. These upgrades are being delivered under the Support Program for the Improvement of Rural Infrastructure for Access to Markets (PAPAIR), a joint development initiative funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Haitian national government.
The delegation’s first stop was Sainte-Suzanne, a commune in Haiti’s North-East department, where two high-priority road segments totaling more than 14 kilometers were inspected. The first segment, connecting Sainte-Suzanne to Sarazin, has seen core infrastructure works completed including 900 meters of stripping and earthworks, a 60-meter retaining wall, and a 50-meter hydraulic concrete roadway. These upgrades are specifically designed to stabilize steep, erosion-prone slopes along the route and make passage safer and more reliable for all vehicles and foot traffic.
For the second priority segment linking Sainte-Suzanne to Foulon, works have focused on flood resilience, a critical need in Haiti’s rainy season. Interventions so far include the construction of a 31-meter retaining wall and the installation of four new water drainage structures: two standard culverts and two box culverts. These additions are essential to preventing runoff water from damaging the road surface and extending the overall lifespan of the infrastructure.
Following the inspection in North-East, the ministerial tour continued into Haiti’s North department, where the delegation visited the active construction site for the 8.6-kilometer Carrefour Lory/Bakiny road segment spanning the communes of Milot and Plaine du Nord. To date, this project ranks among the most advanced rural road rehabilitation initiatives in the entire Far North region.
Progress on the Carrefour Lory/Bakiny segment is extensive: teams have already completed full rehabilitation of the Secap culvert, constructed a new double-cell culvert in Pake, dug and lined 750 meters of masonry drainage ditches, installed four pedestrian access footbridges, poured 153 linear meters of hydraulic concrete roadway, and built 200 cubic meters of gabion protection walls to prevent landslides. All earthworks for the project are now finished, and 7 kilometers of graded dirt roadway have already been fully rehabilitated for use.
At the conclusion of the multi-day inspection tour, Minister Aubourg emphasized that rural road upgrades are a cornerstone of Haiti’s national agricultural development strategy. Once completed, these improved connections will cut logistics costs for smallholder farmers, make it easier to move fresh produce from rural farms to regional and national consumer markets, reduce costly post-harvest waste that currently cuts into farmer incomes, and ultimately strengthen the long-term economic resilience of vulnerable rural communities across northern Haiti.