The day after the January twelve earthquake, the half-a-dozen radio stations that managed to stay on air were a lifeline for a Haitian population faced with despair.

Way before the intervention of the humanitarian agencies and before local authorities could react, the radio remained the only method of communication for 1.5 million Haitians suddenly displaced, as well as those safe but frightened in houses still standing.

The radio was used to send messages for help, to spread news about the fate of relatives, and to share experiences of the earthquake. Haiti's oral media was for once, much more social than political and it was to stay that way for many weeks after the earthquake.

Internews, a US non governmental organization (NGO) quickly stepped in with "Enfomasyon nou dwe konnen" News You Can Use, broadcast daily in Creole through many of Haiti's independent radio stations (21 in all).

Today, six months after January 12, the government, International organisations and the NGOs are far better coordinated. However in the two departments most affected by the earthquake, the majority of the displaced population is still living in camps.

Many are out of work and penniless and keen to join the ‘cash for work programmes' whereby they get paid to clear canals or debris. Many say they have received no aid for weeks.  Rumors that forced evictions may occur is spreading talk of popular resistance. Every time humanitarian teams arrive in camps, there are expectations that there will be  distribution of free food.

To help avoid misunderstandings and the risk of chaos because of a lack of reliable information, the IOM has deployed special communicators to explain the situation to camp dwellers.

This is what community outreach means and these young Haitians are playing a key role in preventing misunderstandings from blowing up into violence. Humanitarian agencies on the ground all value the work of the ‘community mobilizers'. It has quickly become a key element in communicating between the humanitarian community and the displaced population.

Getting closer to the people

"Now, it's about getting closer to the people who do not always understand the action of NGOs, nor of the government," said Pascale Verly, IOM's communication officer overseeing the community mobilizers section. "When we distribute coupons to the people, often they think that we are going to give them food", said Stephanie Daviot. IOM Registration Team Officer. In Vallée Bourdon camp, for example, hundreds of IDPS surrounded those who came to register the population. The population is often frustrated and confused about the role of those who come to the camps. The community mobilizers work to dissipate confusion, by engaging in dialogue and providing realistic explanations.

Supported financially by the Japanese government and the Emergency Relief Response Fund for Haiti (ERRF), IOM's communication department in Haiti helps the government transfer messages to the IDP population. In fact, government messages often reach the IDPs effectively because of the Community Mobilizers. Their key role is to inform and sensitize the people affected without leading to inflated expectations and subsequent disappointment and anger.

Mobilizing the Community

Most of the Community Mobilizers are university graduates. They are recruited based on their capacity to engage in dialogue with the communities, to work in a stressful environment and their ability to maintain good relationships with different segments of the population. These basic qualifications are then complemented through ongoing training.

The Community Mobilizers support other IOM teams with their work.
"The other departments of IOM are like clients to whom we provide a consistent communication service to facilitate their own task in the field", said Elisabeth Labranche, a 25 year old philosophy major, befitting her role as a Community Mobilizer.

"Upstream or downstream", the communication team has a fundamental place in the registration process", explained Stephanie Daviot. Her team's main responsibility is to collect precise information on the families living in the camps, and the families do not always understand the reason for and the implication of these activities.

Based on this, a campaign of sensitization and information outreach, orchestrated by the Mobilizers who must have a good rapport with the population, is necessary before the Registration Team can undertake their work. The Mobilizers continue to inform the population throughout the registration process. At the end of the registration, those registered always want to know what action will be taken as a result of the information collected.

Other times, the Mobilizers are used to ease the fears of camp managers.

"Many NGO have already done a registration here" complained Gerson Edée, Manager of Centre Sportif in Carrefour, which accommodate more than 780 IDP families.

Edée, was worried that this would be just one more registration which, once again, will be left without any follow up.

The IOM Communication Team also uses alternative media; Kenny Mix, a Disc Jockey (DJ), known to many Haitians, toured the camps as the mobilizers handed out flyers to describe the different steps of the registration. "We favor oral and visual communication" explained Pascale Verly. Tragically, Kenny passed away in June and is mourned by many in Haiti.

The Mobilizers were able to ease the concerns of the population of the Vallee Bourdon when the government wanted to relocate to another safer camp. Relocation is only one of the five options for the displaced but these people were hesitant to move far from their original communities and their way of life.

In response to concerns from both those being relocated and the host community, IOM encouraged committees to form to welcome the IDPs. Members of these committees explained how the new settlement camp would function in order to ease apprehension among the IDPs. As a result of this work more than 7,300 people have decided to relocate since the beginning of the relocation process.

The communication flows in the reverse as well so that IDPs provide feedback to the humanitarian actors through IOM's mobilizers.

"The information gathered during our registration campaign allows us to create a database that will serve in the reconstruction process for the country", said Pierrot Rugaba, a manager with the IOM Registration Team.

According to Rugaba, "this is the beginning of a communication process that will inform the reconstruction of the country, a process that takes into consideration the essential needs of disaster affected Haitiens."