Attitude to the game - Haiti

1) "Everyday normality": borlette as part of street life

For a significant part of residents, the borlette lottery is a familiar, "small" rate near the house. Its cultural code is built around tchala - belief in the correspondence of dreams and numbers; today this "language" lives even in mobile applications and reference sites for choosing numbers.

Street notes and ethnographic essays emphasize the scale of the phenomenon: borlette kiosks are found almost everywhere and are perceived as part of the cityscape.

2) The ambivalence of faith: religion, luck and moral boundaries

Experimental studies in Haiti show that religious symbols (Catholic, Protestant, Vaudu) are able to change risk behavior in lotteries; this reflects a complex nexus of faith, hope, and attitudes toward "luck." In everyday life, this often looks like personal piety + a small-sum household game, without the feeling of "deep vice" until the game harms the family.

3) Social background: poverty and protracted humanitarian instability

High poverty increases vulnerability to "fast odds." According to the World Bank, in fiscal 2023, about 63% of the population lived at ~ $3.65/day (PPP), and business activity declined in 2025, which exacerbated household stress.

The security crisis and mass displacement of families have skyrocketed in 2025: the number of displaced children has almost doubled (UNICEF, October 8, 2025), which threatens to lose routine and pushes people to "coping behavior," including play.

• for some residents, a small stake is "detente" and hope;
• for others, a source of anxiety: money "moves" away from the primary needs of the family in favor of the "dream of winning."

4) Online games: alertness to the "gray zone"

Online casinos in Haiti do not have a separate legal regime; regulator LEH in 2025 is focused on digitizing offline and regularly publishes NOTICE/AVIS. From October 1, 2025, only POS LEH is allowed for lotteries throughout the country (grace period until January 1, 2026). This is perceived as "putting things in order" in the usual street game, but not as legalizing online - the attitude towards foreign sites is mixed: curiosity and distrust in the protection of rights.

5) What People Say "on the Ground": Typical Attitudes

"Small money is not a sin." Microstays in borlette are not considered risky unless they interfere with the family; "big" excitement (debts, binge games) is condemned. (Consonant with the religious ambivalence revealed by experiments.)

"A dream suggested a number." Belief in tchala normalizes the game as a cultural ritual rather than a "financial strategy."

"Online is alien and dangerous." In the absence of local rules and lockdown stories, many view internet games with wariness; offshore is "not our law." (Context: LEH does not grant online licenses.)

"Order through the POS is correct." Point owners and customers see POS LEH as a chance for "transparency" and less conflict around payments, although they worry about communication failures and costs.

6) Where society draws red lines

• crowding out food/school costs, causing conflict and domestic violence, diverting MonCash salaries/transfers to the daily "dogon."
• Medical and behavioral reviews of the region compare such dynamics with the growth of anxiety/depression and debt - these are the consequences that most often form a negative attitude towards the game.

7) What changes in 2025-2026

The LEH POS reform standardizes the lottery box office and probably changes the "street experience": fewer "gray" calculations, higher expectations of transparency of payments.

The crisis continues to crush. As long as poverty rates and the scale of displacement are high, public tolerance for "low rates of hope" is unlikely to disappear; at the same time, there is a growing demand for the protection of vulnerable families and clear rules.

The attitude of Haitians to gambling is ambivalent: street borlette with its tchala is perceived as a cultural norm of "little hope," while "big" and especially online play without local protection is wary. Poverty and the humanitarian crisis make people more vulnerable to the risk game, and LEH's efforts to POS digitize lotteries (from 01. 10. 2025) support the public demand for transparency - without, however, canceling the sociocultural reasons for the popularity of borlette. In the near future, the balance will be determined by how much the state will combine "order at the box office" with measures of social support and education, so that the micro-reality of hope does not turn into a macro-environment for families.