November 14, 2025
The World Bank Board of Directors approved a new project on Tuesday to improve resilient rural accessibility and road connectivity in Haiti’s West, South, Southeast, and North departments. Key road segments targeted include National Route 2 (between Les Cayes, Saint-Louis du Sud, and the Port of Saint-Louis du Sud), Departmental Route 41 (in the Southeast), and the border road from Ouanaminthe to the Dominican Republic.
“The Haiti Resilient Corridors Project aims to support the decentralization of the country’s logistics and supply chain through the development of key road corridors for the national economy. The initiative seeks to establish suitable, integrated, and well-maintained transport infrastructure to foster territorial development. The project will facilitate connections between the populations served and basic social services, including health, education, and livelihoods,” said Raphael Hosty, Minister of Public Works, Transportation, and Communications . “We want to thank our partners, including the World Bank, which is providing fundamental support in the construction and rehabilitation of primary and secondary infrastructure to revitalize the local economy.”
“Haiti’s exposure to natural hazards, coupled with vulnerable infrastructure and high levels of environmental degradation, creates fragility that can exacerbate poverty in the country,” said Anne-Lucie Lefèbvre, World Bank Country Manager for Haiti. “Investing in road infrastructure is fundamental to building resilience, generating sustainable jobs, and maximizing access to basic services.”
Frequent episodes of intense rainfall, as well as hurricanes, cause flooding, landslides, and tsunamis that isolate entire regions, particularly during the rainy season. In the context of public transportation, women face increased risks of harassment, assault, and theft, especially during the rainy season when infrastructure is more compromised, limiting their access to economic opportunities and essential services.
The US$80 million Haiti Resilient Corridors Project will restore and modernize critical bridges such as La Digue, Côte-de-Fer, and Mahot, as well as culverts that form the backbone of accessibility for rural communities, while also improving rural roads to create a resilient and robust road network. It will also strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Public Works, Transportation, and Communications to respond to geological and climate risks through the renewal of its stock of emergency bridges.
Furthermore, the project will invest in the protection and rehabilitation of existing road infrastructure to strengthen the road network’s capacity to withstand the effects of climate change and extreme weather events. In highly vulnerable towns with poor rural access in the South, Nippes, Grand’Anse, and Southeast departments, the project will rehabilitate and modernize 100 kilometers of tertiary and rural road networks, focusing on critical points to improve the robustness and reliability of transport, especially during the rainy season.
The project will benefit nearly 2.9 million people by providing them with improved access to sustainable transport infrastructure and services. Its implementation is expected to generate 300,000 direct workdays for the local workforce. The project will encourage the inclusion of women in the transport infrastructure construction workforce by supporting training and certification in the safe and proper use of heavy equipment, as well as training in road construction and maintenance techniques. It will also fund capacity building for the Ministry and construction company staff. The project is financed by the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA). The IDA provides grants and zero- or low-interest loans to help countries finance projects that promote economic growth, reduce inequality, and improve living conditio