Meet Jean Robert
Lakou's mission is to help participants understand and recognize that they have the power to change their lives with the opportunity to learn a trade and, ultimately, the opportunity to have a job.
Part of the new curriculum that guides our training program includes a component based on entrepreneurship and personal finance. The challenge of personal finance is very real in Haiti due to inflation, which increases the price of everything and causes the Haitian currency, the ‘’Gourde’’, to lose it’s value on the exchange market.
Faced with this situation, our workshops on entrepreneurship offer the participants additional opportunities to earn income outside of construction, because many times one job is not sufficient to provide for their families.
Jean Robert ( who Randy calls him Brebre, for short) lives in Cavaillon, which is located fairly close to Les Cayes. Brebre’s house was destroyed in the earthquake of August 14, 2021, and the Lakou team built a temporary house for him and his family. He is one of our most disciplined participants and everyone recognizes him as an important part of the team.
Brebre, and another participant named Faubert, have both used what they’ve learned from the entrepreneurship workshops by investing in farming and agriculture. These two have teamed up to buy small chickens to raise and sell. In their business, they mate hens and roosters to produce more baby chicks then they nourish the chicks with corn seed from Brebre’s garden until they are ready to be sold. While Brebre is off learning the construction trade, his wife takes care of the chickens and the house, and she also makes bread to sell. Life for them is very difficult, especially since they lost their house in the earthquake, but they inspire me because they have learned to be entrepreneurs.
Making a living and providing for a family is hard in many places in the world. It is important to encourage every Haitian to understand entrepreneurship and how extra income can be earned by starting a business or by helping other family members to start a business.
Lakou is proud to be able to touch the life of each participant, not only by teaching them a trade and giving them a job, but also by sharing many principles and methods that allow them to take the initiative to improve their lives and share what they have learned.
Written By: Buchman Laguerre, Communications Coordinator for Lakou and citizen of Les Cayes, Haiti
