Being the largest immigrant population in the Dominican RepublicHaitians are the ones with the highest incidence in the public health system, in the educational system (public, private and semi-official) and in deportations what the country does.
The percentage of Haitian students, regardless of the sector, grew by 37.11% between the years 2017-2018 and 2020-2021, according to data provided by the Ministry of Education of the Dominican Republic (Minerd).
In the 2017-2018 educational year, the Minerd recorded 76,598 people of Haitian nationality in the modalities of initial, primary, secondary and education for adults. Three years later, the public institution recorded 105,021 students of Haitian nationality.
Keep in mind that Haitians represent the 87.2% (497,825 people) of the immigrant population in the Dominican Republic and it is a movement, historically of a labor nature, in accordance with the Second National Survey of immigrants (ENI) of 2017.
By educational sector
From the information requested from the Minerd, it can be deduced that the highest growth was recorded in the public sectorwhich went from 64,724 students of Haitian nationality for the 2017-2018 educational year to 93,403 for the period 2020-2021. What represents an increase of 44.31%.
While in the private sector there was growth between the educational years 2017-2018 to 2019-2020, Haitian student population decreased by 2.87% for the 2020-2021 period, which is the pandemic year and when distance classes began.
There was also an increase in the population in the semi-official sector in the four years of education consulted. For the period 2017-2018 there were 631 students of Haitian nationality and for 2020-2021 the figure reached 698, an increase of 10.62% for the semi-official sector.
In the sector Health
The immigrants Haitians also have an impact on the country’s health sector, especially in public establishments. Last year (2021), the Dominican Government tightened its immigration measures towards Haitibecause the security crisis caused by the armed gangs.
Some decisions included topics in the sector Health What limit only to emergencies access to hospitals for irregular immigrants or prevent entry into the country from abroad that implies “an unreasonable burden” on public finances, including pregnant women from six months.
According to the Information and Statistics Repository of the National Service of Health (SNS), between 2019 and until September of this year in public health establishments there were 427,397 deliveries, being 119,786 of mothers of Haitian nationality, which represents 28% of the total. Of other nationalities, which are not specified, there were 1,342 births, for 0.3%. The rest were Dominican.
The data shows an increase in births of Haitian mothers going from 23.7% for 2019, 27.2% for 2020, 30.5% for 2021. Already for this year an increase is also observed because, only until September from 2022, the births of Haitian nationals are 31.9% of the total, 80,964.
The SNS explained that the data from previous years is in its institutional transparency portal. Although the information is there, the nationality of the foreigners who were provided with the service is not specified.
There is also an increase in the services offered to immigrants in external consultations, going from 7.49% for 2019 to 8.26% until September of this year. The same happens in the laboratory service, which rose from 7.71% in the year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic to 8.35% until the ninth month of 2022.
Likewise, there is an increase between 2019 and September of this year in surgeries (from 7.42% to 9.7%), in hospitalizations (from 11.92% to 14.34%), in imaging services (from 5.12% to 7.4%). and in emergencies (from 8.26% to 10.29%).
The deportations
In the last five years, the Dominican Republic deported 248,778 people of Haitian nationality, according to statistics from the General Directorate of Migration (DGM). These repatriations represent 99.5% of the 249,963 made by the institution between 2017 and 2021.
The country recorded an increase in deportations in general, but they were affected in 2020 and 2021, periods that were marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions established by the Government to reduce infections.
In all the years, Haitian immigrants represented more than 98% of the people deported in the years consulted. In 2017 there were 57,713 (99.47%), in 2018 the General Directorate of Migration deported 55,912 (99.57%) immigrants Haitians. In the following year, 67,469 (99.79%) were repatriated.
For 2020, the year in which the restrictions due to the pandemic began, the General Directorate of Migration deported Haiti 23,664 (98.22%) and last year 44,020 immigrants Haitians were returned to their country, for 99.86%.
