Along the Gulf of Gonâve
The commune’s northern edge meets the Gulf of Gonâve, giving Petite Rivière a strong coastal identity.
OUR ROOTS
Petite Rivière
de Nippes
Where our
story began.
A strong community with a rich history, resilient people and endless potential. Petite Rivière inspires our mission to build stronger communities across Haiti.
ONE COMMUNITY. ONE BEGINNING. A VISION FOR ALL OF HAITI.
A closer look
A small commune with a strong identity.
Petite Rivière de Nippes is part of the Miragoâne arrondissement in Haiti's Nippes Department. The commune stretches from the coast into hills and rural sections, with most residents living outside the small urban core.
The Haitian Institute of Statistics and Informatics estimated the commune's population at 28,553 in 2015, including the town of Petite Rivière, the Charlier district and several rural communal sections.
Population figure: IHSI 2015 population estimates. We label the year because more recent official commune-level census figures are not readily available.
Life and livelihood
Land, sea and local knowledge.
Agriculture and small-scale fishing have long been part of the local economy, with families relying on the resources around them as well as trade with nearby towns.
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Farming
Bananas, citrus, cassava, maize, millet, yams and other food crops are among products associated with the area.
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Fishing
Coastal access supports fishing for fish, lobster and conch, although equipment and infrastructure can limit how far local fishers can operate.
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Coastal Landscape
The commune combines shoreline, plains, hills and valleys — geography that shapes settlement, transportation and daily life.
OUR HOME • OUR ROOTS
Meet Petite Rivière de Nippes.
On the northern coast of Haiti’s southern peninsula sits a community that is central to the story of Touch Haiti.
Petite Rivière de Nippes is a coastal commune in the Nippes department and part of the Miragoâne arrondissement. Known historically as Rochelois, the commune stretches beyond the town itself into rural, coastal and inland communities.
This is the place THT knows personally. It is why our work begins here—not because Petite Rivière is the only community in need, but because lasting work starts with connection, understanding and trust.
IN HAITIAN CREOLETi Rivyè de Nip
NIPPES • HAITICoast.
Hills.
Community.
Hills.
Community.
A PLACE WITH MANY FACES
More than a dot
on the map.
Petite Rivière combines coastal plains, inland hills and rural communities. Agriculture, fishing, local commerce and family networks have long been part of everyday life.
Four communal sections
Fonds des Lianes, Cholette, Silègue and Bézin form the commune beyond the town center.
Coast, plateau & hills
The wider commune includes different landscapes and communities, each with its own local realities.
Riva-Nippois
The people of Petite Rivière carry generations of family, cultural and community ties to this part of Nippes.
ROOTS THAT RUN DEEP
Home is more than geography.
For Touch Haiti, Petite Rivière is not an abstract project area. It is a hometown.
That difference matters. Our connection gives the mission a responsibility to listen carefully, avoid assumptions and keep the people of the community at the center of the work.
It also keeps our ambitions grounded. We do not need to promise that we can fix everything. We can begin by helping build useful things, supporting real needs and strengthening opportunities one step at a time.
“Start where your roots are. Build where your hands can reach.”
BEAUTY & REALITY
A beautiful place can still face hard challenges.
Petite Rivière’s coastline and landscape are part of what makes the community special. But geography can also create vulnerability. Historic local planning documents have identified flooding, erosion, difficult road access and gaps in services such as education, health and water as challenges for the commune.
Haiti’s broader insecurity has added another layer, limiting safe access and making consistent on-the-ground work more difficult in recent years.
We can appreciate the beauty of Petite Rivière without hiding the realities people face—and we can talk about those challenges without reducing the community to them.
RESILIENCE IS NOT THE GOAL.Opportunity is.
People should not have to be celebrated only for surviving difficult circumstances. The future we want to support includes more choices, stronger resources and room to thrive.
WHAT MAKES A COMMUNITY
People. Place. Possibility.
The story of Petite Rivière is bigger than need. It is also family, work, learning, faith, culture, memory and the everyday relationships that hold a community together.
The center of everyday life
Our work starts with the well-being and dignity of families, because stronger households help strengthen the wider community.
The future is already here
Education, safe spaces, mentorship and practical opportunities can help young people imagine more possibilities for their future.
Skills that can open doors
Training and practical skills can support greater independence and create more ways for people to build livelihoods close to home.
WHY THT STARTS HERE
Focus creates the chance to do better work.
Touch Haiti is still small. We see that as a reason to stay focused, not a reason to pretend to be bigger.
01
We know the community.
Our connection to Petite Rivière gives the mission a real starting point.
02
We can listen locally.
Projects should respond to needs people identify, not ideas imposed from far away.
03
We can grow responsibly.
Concentrating resources helps us learn, build relationships and expand only when it makes sense.
THE PETITE RIVIÈRE WE BELIEVE IN
A community with more room to thrive.
LearnMore support and opportunity for students.
BuildSafer homes and stronger community resources.
GrowSkills, training and pathways to independence.
ConnectSpaces and partnerships that bring people together.
PETITE RIVIÈRE DE NIPPESThis is where our roots are.
This is where our roots are.
This is where we begin.
Help Touch Haiti turn connection into practical support and long-term opportunity for the community we call home.