Haiti: Young and Volatile
Demography and Development
By Béatrice Daumerie
With 70 percent of its population under age 30 and a history of sustained political instability, Haiti illustrates the dilemma facing a country with an abundance of young people who have too few opportunities.
Crisis, political instability and violence have always been key ingredients in Haiti’s history, but they seem to have intensified over the last two decades. When a military coup led by General Raoul Cédras overthrew the democratically elected government of Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 1991, Haiti entered one of its darkest periods. For many years, the situation worsened, following a downward spiral of economic stagnation, political crisis, violence and large outward migration. Meanwhile, sustained high fertility levels have resulted in a very young age structure.
While the influence of population on political stability and security is certainly not a simple cause-and-effect relationship, a very youthful age structure can potentially exacerbate the development challenges faced by a nation and, in turn, accentuate political instability.
