Building resilience to natural hazards, such as hurricanes, flooding, and earthquakes, is never easy, especially for a country like Haiti, which is highly vulnerable to these threats. High levels of poverty, weak infrastructure, an unstable political landscape, rapid and unregulated urbanization, and fragile government agencies—including those responding to disaster risks—raise the hurdle even more, amid a pandemic that every country is struggling to contain. With climate change playing an increasing role in all these hazards, the latest data from insurer Munich Re shows that losses from natural catastrophes in 2020 rose to $210 billion globally, from $166 billion in 2019.

Despite the determination of the Haitian people to build back better after every disaster, including the tragic 2010 earthquake and Hurricane Matthew in 2016, the country was yet again hit by a massive 7.2 magnitude earthquake on August 14, 2021. According to authorities, more than 2,200 people died and up to 130,000 homes were destroyed or damaged in southern Haiti. Then only a few days later, Tropical Depression Grace dumped extremely heavy rains in the same southwestern peninsula, still reeling from the impact of the earthquake, delaying urgent humanitarian assistance and damage assessments.