HAITI FACES MIDDLE EAST OIL SHOCK: A DECREE TO PROTECT THE POPULATION WITHOUT RUINING THE STATE

The issue of fuel in Haiti is once again at the center of public debate, in a context marked by both international tensions in oil markets and an internal reform of the price-setting mechanism. Between rumors of shortage, concerns about a potential increase, and new government measures, it becomes necessary to reframe the debate within its true economic, institutional, and international context.

First, it must be understood that the current situation cannot be analyzed without considering the global context. The war in the Middle East and international geopolitical tensions have caused a significant rise in oil prices on the international market. This increase does not only concern Haiti: several countries have already adjusted their pump prices to absorb the oil shock. Haiti, a net importer of petroleum products, cannot remain entirely unaffected by these fluctuations. When the international price increases, the cost of import mechanically rises. The state, not being an importer or distributor of petroleum products, cannot indefinitely absorb this difference without creating a major budgetary imbalance.

Too often, ill-intentioned or irresponsible political actors use the issue of pump price adjustments with the aim of provoking a social shockwave likely to lead to a change of government, while the underlying problem remains unresolved and cannot be solved by violent or incendiary demonstrations. The issue of fuel is above all an economic, budgetary, and structural problem that requires technical, institutional, and sustainable solutions, not repetitive political crises that further weaken the state and the national economy.

It is in this difficult context, at least I imagine, that the government adopted the new decree determining the modalities for setting prices of petroleum products. The objective is not simply to increase or decrease prices, but to introduce a stable, predictable, and transparent mechanism to avoid sudden adjustments and improvised decisions as in the past. Based on a participatory and inclusive logic, the new system now relies on a regulated automatic adjustment mechanism, with a variation threshold and a limitation on overly rapid adjustments, which aims to protect both consumers and public finances.

In parallel, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry published an official note reminding that there is currently no fuel shortage and that illegal sales in jerrycans are prohibited. This measure primarily aims to combat speculation, illegal storage, and clandestine resale, which artificially worsen fuel crises. In reality, in many past situations, scarcity was not always linked to a real lack of fuel, but to speculative behavior and illicit storage.

To fully understand the Haitian oil sector, it must also be recalled that since market liberalization in 2021, the role of the state has changed considerably. Before this date, the state, via the BMPAD, ordered, controlled, and marketed petroleum products. Today, orders are placed directly by private companies grouped within the APPE, while the state, still via the BMPAD, is primarily limited to managing tenders for premiums (transport costs) and quality control of imported products. The pump price, for its part, remains fixed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance through the price structure at the level of the Tax Inspection Directorate (DIF).