Foreign Affairs Minister Darren Henfield says Haiti needs to be infused  with economic enterprises  to reduce the level of economic refugees fleeing that country.  This past Friday the Minister  updated The Journal on CARICOM’s talks concerning the recent eruption of violence in Haiti. 

Mr. Henfield said that the island nation’s foreign minister gave the heads of the conference a report on his government’s view of that situation. 

At the end of the day, he said, the conference should hone in on CARICOM’s efforts to improve the circumstances in that country.

“We all agree that it’s an economic problem. Haiti needs to be infused somehow through commercial enterprises, and we’ve agreed to encourage our nationals and national companies through the various ministries or the Chamber of Commerce to delve deeply into what exists in Haiti for business.”, he said. 

The minister added that if the economy of Haiti can be improved by providing business opportunities for Bahamians, this will encourage more Haitian citizens to remain home rather than risking their lives in sometimes tragic sea journeys. 

A total of 207 Haitian nationals have been apprehended for the year. 

This number excludes the 31 bodies recovered from the waters off Abaco after their 40-foot conventional yacht struck a reef and sank on Saturday 2 February. 

Last year, at total of 1,172 Haitians were apprehended.