Frisner Milien has served with Jesus in Haiti Ministries for nearly a decade. Over the years, his thoughtfulness and sincerity, combined with a strong work ethic, have earned him the respect of his colleagues and the community.

In this time of pandemic, the health and economic consequences have been devastating all over the world. In Haiti, where we have been facing a socio-political crisis since July 2018, the economic impacts of the pandemic hit us particularly hard, especially combined with the rate of inflation.

COVID-19 has brought Haiti’s already fragile economy even closer to collapse. The country’s stay-at-home order, issued in mid-March, has closed schools and all non-essential businesses, causing many who already live without a margin to have wages reduced or lose their jobs altogether.

On the morning of Thursday, March 19, JiHM’s national leadership met to discuss the coronavirus situation and how we could begin applying preventative measures to protect students and staff. We knew we needed to prepare for the possibility of it coming to Haiti, and we put an action plan in place for Monday.