A Haitian farmer dries rice in the sun.
On today's Planet Money:
The people selling rice in Port-au-Prince say business is terrible. So we travel to l'Artibonite, Haiti's rice country, to learn more.
There are lots of problems with Haiti's rice market. Since the earthquake, free rice from foreign aid groups has made it harder for Haitian farmers to sell what they grow.
Even before the earthquake, they had a hard time competing with foreign rice, which is produced using high-output, modern farming techniques that aren't available in Haiti.
As we noted last week, some rice farmers find themselves forced to choose between keeping enough rice for their children to eat, and selling enough rice to pay for their children to go to school.
Some — including Mirana Honorable, shown below — are choosing to pay for school, in hopes their children can find a life outside of farming.
Download the podcast, or Subscribe. Music: Beethova Obas' "Si." Find us: Twitter/ Facebook/ Flickr.
Mirana Honorable points to her house.
***
Students at the Bethlehem School in l'Artibonite.
Comments
Discussions for this story are now closed. Please see the Community FAQ for more information.