In the administrative divisions of Haiti, the department (, ; ) is the first of four levels of government. Haiti is divided administratively into ten departments, which are further subdivided into 42 arrondissements, 149 communes, and 574 communal sections as of 2021.
The Haitian government separately divides communes into villes, quartiers, and sections rurales to count urban and rural populations. Generally, each commune has one ville which serves as the administrative center and corresponds to the largest urban communal section. Quartiers are also counted as urban, but they are less populated and usually located in a different communal section.
In 2014, there was a proposal by the Chamber of Deputies to increase the number of departments from 10 to 14 —perhaps as high as 16.
Administration Each departments has a departmental council (conseil départemental) compound of three members elected by the departmental assembly for a 4-year term. The departmental council is led by a president (président). The council is the executive organ of the department.
Each department has a departmental assembly who assists the council in its work. The departmental assembly is the deliberative organ of the department. The members of the departmental assembly are also elected for 4 years. The departmental assembly is led by a president.
History Three departments have roots in the former French colony of Saint-Domingue, namely: the Nord, Sud, and Ouest. In 1801, under Governor-General Toussaint Louverture, the "provinces," became known as departments. The departement of l'Artibonite was known as departement of Louverture.
Under the administration of Dessalines the country was administrated by military divisions.
In 1821, Artibonite was created and in 1844, Nord-Ouest, both derived out of the Nord and Ouest departments. In 1962 during the reign of "Papa Doc" Duvalier, four new departments were created out of a territorial redistribution. These departments were: Centre, Grand'Anse, Nord-Ouest and Sud-Est. In 2003, a tenth department was created out of Grand'Anse, called Nippes.
In the 1990s, before the creation of Nippes, the was a phrase commonly used in regards to the Haitian diaspora. Since then, the phrase was soon adopted to describe the diaspora.
Demographics
Data based on 2015 estimates from the Haitian government. Map Department Capital Area (km2) Population Density(Pop./km2) PlanningRegion1 Artibonite Gonaïves 350 Central2 Centre Hinche 210 Central3 Grand'Anse Jérémie 240 South4 Nippes Miragoâne 270 South5 Nord Cap-Haïtien 500 North6 Nord-Est Fort-Liberté 240 North7 Nord-Ouest Port-de-Paix 350 Central8 Ouest Port-au-Prince 810 West9 Sud-Est Jacmel 310 West10 Sud Les Cayes 290 South
See also ISO 3166-2:HT Haiti Arrondissements of Haiti List of communes of Haiti List of departments of Haiti by Human Development Index List of West Indian first-level country subdivisions
References
External links Code Postal Haitien