The economic costs of Haiti's Jan. 12 earthquake have shown it to be the most destructive natural disaster for any one country in modern times.
Estimates from the InterAmerican Development Bank put the cost of rebuilding Haiti at anywhere from $8 billion to $14 billion — at the high end, that's twice the size of Haiti's total economy last year.
We looked at three areas in which people are starting to rebuild Haiti's economy.
AGRICULTURE
About two-thirds of Haiti's workers make a living from agriculture, but the country produces less than half its needed food supply. One USAID-funded program has been working with cocoa farmers to help improve their yields, a chronic problem with many of Haiti's farmers, who lack the resources and technology to improve their crops.
Having farmers increase production is even more crucial post-earthquake, as these farmers in the countryside are seeing their family sizes increase as quake victims flee from the capital to rural areas.
RUM
Getting Haiti's biggest companies restarted is also crucial in the capital. Barbancourt Rhum is Haiti's oldest manufacturer, with factory operations that date back to 1862.
The factory, located just outside of Port-au-Prince, suffered some damage during the earthquake -- equipment in the distillery and barrels of rum broke in the aging room.
To read the complete article, visit www.miamiherald.com.