The Multiplier Effect
Here’s how it works:
When you donate an item to Haiti, such as a t-shirt, someone will put it to good use. You will be contributing just a little bit to help make someone’s life a little better, until the t-shirt becomes unusable.
However, if you donate a dollar to a deserving Haitian (let’s say as a pay raise to a hardworking GVCM teacher), something special happens.
If that teacher buys an extra t-shirt with that dollar, that dollar gets passed on to a Haitian vendor who would not otherwise have had it. That Haitian vendor then can buy some flip-flops for his daughter. The lady who sold that extra pair of flip-flops can now afford to buy an extra soda from another vendor.
This cycle continues for a while, and creates what economists call “the multiplier effect.” The multiplier effect varies from place to place, but in Haiti, it is near a factor of twelve. That means that your $1 can buy $12 worth of things to improve Haitian lives.
This is one of the main reasons why GVCM has over 200 Haitians on staff (teachers, pastors, medical providers, caretakers, and more). Money paid out to our staff for their hard work helps not only them but also their families and communities!
A good job empowers a person and we would much rather provide that than ship free items to Haiti.
When you donate an item to Haiti, such as a t-shirt, someone will put it to good use. You will be contributing just a little bit to help make someone’s life a little better, until the t-shirt becomes unusable.
However, if you donate a dollar to a deserving Haitian (let’s say as a pay raise to a hardworking GVCM teacher), something special happens.
If that teacher buys an extra t-shirt with that dollar, that dollar gets passed on to a Haitian vendor who would not otherwise have had it. That Haitian vendor then can buy some flip-flops for his daughter. The lady who sold that extra pair of flip-flops can now afford to buy an extra soda from another vendor.
This cycle continues for a while, and creates what economists call “the multiplier effect.” The multiplier effect varies from place to place, but in Haiti, it is near a factor of twelve. That means that your $1 can buy $12 worth of things to improve Haitian lives.
This is one of the main reasons why GVCM has over 200 Haitians on staff (teachers, pastors, medical providers, caretakers, and more). Money paid out to our staff for their hard work helps not only them but also their families and communities!
A good job empowers a person and we would much rather provide that than ship free items to Haiti.