The Context

Haiti is currently the poorest country in Latin America, with 78% of the population living
below the absolute poverty line.
ANPIL has been operating in Haiti since 1993 and, through distance sponsorship,
collaborates with six schools in the country, allowing more than 200 children to receive basic
education, providing them with the necessary materials, and ensuring their main meal of the
day.

On Tortuga Island, the Nôtre-Dame de Palmiste school, which is involved in our current
project, is attended by 546 children, 53 of whom are supported by ANPIL. ANPIL has
already contributed to setting up the school’s library and medical room.

After coming into contact with the reality of Nôtre-Dame de Palmiste during our recent
summer experience in Haiti, we decided to contribute to the necessary improvements to the
school’s facilities.

We were struck by the unacceptable condition of the current kitchen: a dark room with
large stones in the center, precariously supporting the only large pot. The hot coals are
placed directly on the floor.

The environment is unsafe for both the cooks and the children. The risk of injury is
extremely high: even the slightest movement of one of the stones can cause the large pots
to tip over, leading to severe burns. Moreover, there is no ventilation system to prevent the
fumes from the charcoal from filling the room. The quality of the food offered to the children is, understandably, affected by the unsanitary conditions of the place where it is prepared.

At ANPIL, we cannot remain indifferent: it is essential that the children we support are able
to enjoy a meal prepared in a dignified kitchen.
We have decided to take action by completely renovating the space.

The Project

Why the decision to renovate the kitchen? The lunch that the students benefit from is a
fundamental part of the distance sponsorship project, as it is often the only meal the children
can afford. For this reason, we are committed to ensuring that the environment where the
food is prepared complies with safety standards.

What is shocking is the comparison we can implicitly make with our own kitchen standards.
On Tortuga Island, poverty is so widespread that our concept of a kitchen doesn’t exist:
unstable stones are the norm, something everyone is accustomed to.

Our goal, beyond the concrete renovation of the space, is to set an example for the
children themselves and show them a better alternative, so they have a model to follow
when it will be their turn to run a household and raise a family.