The Great North, particularly amid the crisis affecting Port-au-Prince and its surrounding areas, is receiving a certain level of attention from the government. Attention that the population of Cap-Haïtien is seeking to turn into concrete action. Sanitation and cleanup works were undertaken by the central government in Cap-Haïtien after members of the population expressed their anger over the deterioration of the municipality’s infrastructure. Is this merely window dressing for the people of Cap-Haïtien, or the implementation of a plan to heal the deep wounds of the country’s second-largest city?

That will depend on the ability of the population of the North — indeed of the Greater North — to stand their ground with the authorities in Port-au-Prince and place the region’s real needs at the center of the upcoming elections. It is clear that the serious problems facing Cap-Haïtien and the surrounding communes will not be solved overnight, but the implementation of a long-term plan can begin today.