The problem, say Haitians and North Americans working for long-established aid groups, is that there is no control over who gets to set up aid programs, nor any official efforts to coordinate the efforts of the many groups. And just like on the frontier, there are lots of lone rangers who do their own thing, never taking any advice from groups which have been here a long time. The result, says Wiens, is that the same mistakes are made over and over by new groups. You can be on one side of the mountain, operating a program which emphasizes the participation of local people, doing things which require them to take some responsibility and ownership. Meanwhile, on the other side, a group comes by and gives away free food or aid.
Human nature is the same all over the world.
He recalls what happened in one town where MCC workers lived and worked. After all, the other group did. The result is a nation of beggars, says Guy Labbe, a Haitian who manages a local factory which tries to assist people through job creation. As might be expected, some Haitians are quite angry over how some groups deliver aid in their country. One North American aid worker recalls visiting a Haitian community leader and asking how his agency could best help in Haiti.