Private construction company calls for international cooperation

SOGED (Société Générale de Distribution S.A.) is a private company involved in construction work and the distribution of a variety of items, from generators to Nokia phones. Formed in 1982 and forced ten years later by the international embargo to close down, it re-opened in 1995 and has been working hard ever since to increase business.

JEAN MARIE VORBE Managing Director of SOGED

Managing Director Jean Marie Vorbe is a typical example of a dynamic private sector entrepreneur who views the current financial situation as the main drawback to progress. He feels the construction business has suffered particularly because of the current international sanctions and the withholding of foreign aid. “The major bottom line is economics,” he states, and would like to see “overseas countries and the U.S. in particular providing financial help as soon as possible.”
He also believes that politics are inseparable from economics and that “it is essential for local businesses and the international world at large, including the U.S., World Bank and IBC, to open up, collaborate and engage in constructive dialogue with the current democratically-elected government.”

SOGED (Société Générale de Distribution) technician dispatching a generator.

Rather than change business, companies should concentrate on training courses to improve staff efficiency, in Mr. Vorbe’s opinion. They will then be better prepared when the expected recovery takes place. He admits that, once trained, many people leave the country to earn more money elsewhere. “All Caribbean people are boat people,” he observes, referring to their need to move to earn a living. He also stresses that Haitians cherish their independence as much as anyone else. “We do not like to be told what to do. We like to negotiate our own issues. And whatever happens, Haitians still keep their sense of humor.” He also mentions that his countrymen’s remarkable instinct for survival further reinforces his belief that things will eventually change for the better in Haiti.