67% of all global international trade is conducted in English. The WTO, IMF, and World Bank all operate primarily in English.
When businesses decide where to invest, build, and hire, language is infrastructure. It determines whether international companies can communicate with local talent, whether Haitian entrepreneurs can pitch to investors, and whether professionals can access the global knowledge economy.
The World Economic Forum consistently identifies English proficiency as one of the top predictors of national economic competitiveness. Countries that invested early in English education — Singapore, Rwanda, the Philippines, Jamaica — saw measurable returns in foreign investment, tourism revenue, and professional mobility.
The most current research in medicine, engineering, agriculture, and economics is published predominantly in English. Haitian doctors, engineers, and farmers who can read English access a body of knowledge that those limited to French and Creole sources cannot reach — or reach only after significant translation delays.
In the digital economy, English is even more dominant. The world's leading platforms — Google, GitHub, Coursera, LinkedIn, AWS — operate in English. A Haitian tech entrepreneur fluent in English can find clients globally and sell digital services without leaving Port-au-Prince.
| Country | Main Language | English Level | GDP/Capita |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barbados 🇧🇧 | English | Native | $17,500 |
| Trinidad & Tobago 🇹🇹 | English | Native | $16,900 |
| Dominican Republic 🇩🇴 | Spanish | Moderate | $9,800 |
| Jamaica 🇯🇲 | English | Very High | $6,400 |
| Haiti 🇭🇹 | Creole, French | Very Low | $1,600 |
Every nation above Haiti speaks English natively or at high proficiency.
Jamaica earns $3.8 billion annually from Caribbean tourism. Haiti earns a fraction — despite comparable natural beauty. The difference? English-fluent hospitality workers who make visitors feel welcomed and understood.
Haiti's diaspora sends over $3 billion in remittances home each year — but financial transfers are just the beginning. The diaspora's professional networks, business connections, and institutional knowledge represent an even larger, mostly untapped resource. A Haiti fluent in English can engage that resource fully.
Moreover, second and third-generation Haitian-Americans are predominantly English-dominant. When they want to reconnect with Haiti — to invest, to build, to serve — they need a Haiti that can meet them in English. Every year Haiti doesn't make the shift, it deepens the disconnect with its most powerful external resource.
Embracing English does not mean abandoning Creole. Creole is Haiti's soul — the language of its laughter, prayer, and family. What we argue is that Haiti must be trilingual: Creole at home and in the heart, French for legal and historical continuity, and English for the economy and the world.