Haiti allocates $2.9 million for long-delayed Jean-Rabel road project

PORT-DE-PAIX— Haiti’s government has allocated approximately $2.9 million for the long-delayed construction of the road connecting Jean-Rabel to Port-de-Paix, a major infrastructure project residents hope will finally improve travel, trade and access to hospitals in the Northwest Department.

The Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Communications ( MTPTC) said work on the 28-mile dirt-tracked corridor is expected to begin this month and be completed over three years.

The project marks the first time the Jean-Rabel to Port-de-Paix road has been formally included in Haiti’s national budget, according to Angelot Oracius Joseph, the MTPTC’s departmental director in the Northwest.

“For the first time, the Jean-Rabel to Port-de-Paix road has been included in the national budget and will receive funding of 377 million gourdes, or approximately $2.9 million,” Oracius said in a press conference on April 30.

A region shaped by neglected infrastructure, concerns over funding and oversight 

The announcement comes amid growing frustration in Haiti’s Northwest, where residents have long complained of abandoned, delayed or poorly managed public infrastructure projects.

Several major initiatives — including the long-promised Port-de-Paix to Anse-à-Foleur road and the stalled Port-à-l’Écu International Airport project— remain unfinished or largely inactive years after being announced.

The deteriorating road network has isolated communities, disrupted trade and deepened economic hardship in one of Haiti’s most underserved regions. During heavy rains, roads often become impassable, cutting off access to hospitals, schools and markets.