In 3 years, the garment manufacturing sector, which employed 62,000 workers in Haiti in December 2021, has lost more than 40,000 workers (64%) according to Georges Sassine, the former President of the Association of Industries of Haiti.

In addition to the security crisis, the uncertainty of the renewal of trade preferences for Haiti under the HOPE (Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement) Act and its complementary HELP (Haiti Economic Lift Program) program, which gives certain garments duty-free access to the American market, is set to expire in September 2025.

Georges Sassine explains that buyers are not convinced that the American Congress will renew the HOPE/HELP Act and that it takes months to develop a relationship with a manufacturer, that contracts take much longer to sign, and they cannot commit to something that they do not know will end in September...

For 3 years, the textile industry in Haiti has been trying to get Congress to renew the HOPE/HELP Act, which has the support of the Biden administration, but whose extension has been delayed due to disagreements between Democrats and Republicans...

The security climate in Haiti has been devastating for the textile sector apparel, but still, Sassine believes the industry needs to find a way to survive and "recover some of those jobs," which the renewal of HOPE/HELP would allow.

Should be noted that Fernando Capellan, owner of the CODEVI industrial park, has 11 tenants manufacturing for 15 different brands, currently has 15,000 employees. He has lost about 6,000 since the beginning of the crisis and could lose another 6,000 if the HOPE/HELP law is not extended.

At the Caracol industrial park, there are only 2,900 jobs left and only one tenant, the Korean textile company Sae-A Trading Co., which operates under the name S&H Global in Haiti.

TB/ HaitiLibre