Haiti, Education Reform, and International Aid: Perspectives From Within the Haitian State

• In Event: Roundtable Session 59
  In Roundtable Session: Education Policies and Reform in Africa and in the Caribbean

Abstract

In seeking to counter the postcolonial discourse, academics often draw attention to the 'subaltern', focusing on grassroots leadership, indigenous communities and civil society; the postcolonial state—and its inherent complexity—is often overlooked or oversimplified. As an entity that is simultaneously ‘above’ (the civil society) and ‘below’ (the international community)—not to mention the ways in which it is intricately interwoven within the two—, the postcolonial state is often the target of criticism from both directions. This presentation complicates the discourse about the Haitian state by highlighting the experiences of Haitian professionals who have been working to strengthen the Ministry of Education and change the direction of international aid in Haiti; their stories offer important lessons about international development.

Author

• Laura K. Colket, University of Pennsylvania