This local farmer is a beneficiary of Caritas seeds distribution program.

Credits: Irene Klimkova

Haitians will never forget the 12th January 2010. It was the day a massive earthquake crushed thousands of people to death and ripped apart the nation’s villages, towns and cities.

The 7-magnitude earthquake killed over 300,000 people. Hundreds of thousands of people were injured, schools, hospitals and the president’s palace lay in ruins and people’s lives and livelihoods in tatters.

Caritas was in Haiti before and during the earthquake and has been there ever since. Its staff on the ground has lived side by side with communities through the trauma of seeing whole streets flattened and not knowing whether family members were dead or alive. Caritas was there in the long months after the disaster, when food and water were hard to come by and when piles of rubble lay where people’s homes once stood.

Caritas was also there when Haiti, which was already on its knees, was dealt further blows and was battered by hurricanes and the dark shadow of cholera took more than 7000 lives.

Haitians have shown courage, resourcefulness and resilience to rebuild their lives and face the future amidst senseless devastation and suffering. When all seemed lost, Haitians were the living examples of the saying “where there’s life, there’s hope”.

As the third anniversary of Haiti’s earthquake draws near, let us remember where Haiti has been, where it is now and what lies ahead by looking at what some Caritas member organisations have been doing there.