Artibonite is one of the ten departments

Departments of Haiti

The Communes of Haiti are the third-level divisions of Haiti. The 10 departments have 42 arrondissements which are divided into 140 communes.-Artibonite Department:*Dessalines Arrondissement**Desdunes**Dessalines**Grande Saline...

 (French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

: départements) of Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

. With an area of 4,984 km² it is Haiti's largest department. Artibonite has a population of 1,168,800 (2002). The region is the country's main rice-growing area. The main cities are Gonaïves

Gonaïves

Gonaïves is a city in northern Haiti, the capital of the Artibonite Department. It has a population of about 104,825 people . The city's name derives from the original Amerindian name of Gonaibo. It is also known as Haïti's "independence city"...

 (the capital) and Saint-Marc

Saint-Marc

Saint-Marc is a coastal port town in western Haiti in the Artibonite Department. Its geographic coordinates are . At the 2003 Census the municipality had 160,181 inhabitants....

. An insurgency tried unsuccessfully to declare Artibonite's independence in February 2004.

The department has been in a state of an economic decrease since the insurgencies and coups have reduced the nation's stability. Since the election of President René Garcia Préval, the production of rice and other crops has been on an increase.

Deschapelles

Deschapelles

This article refers to a town in Haiti. For the French chess master, see Alexandre Deschapelles.Deschapelles is a town in Haiti, in the Artibonite Valley. Deschapelles is where the Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti is located.-External links:*...

, in the Artibonite valley, is the location of the Hospital Albert Schweitzer Haiti

Hospital Albert Schweitzer Haiti

Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti, founded by Larry Mellon and his wife Gwen Grant Mellon in 1956, is an integrated rural health system that provides medical care and community health and development programs for 300,000 impoverished people in the Artibonite Valley of central Haiti...

.

Arrondissements & Communes

• Dessalines Arrondissement
  • Desdunes
    Desdunes
    Desdunes is a town in the Artibonite Department of Haiti. It is located in the Artibonite Valley, roughly 93 miles north of Port-au-Prince....
    
    
  • Dessalines
    Dessalines
    Dessalines can refer to:* Jean-Jacques Dessalines, a general and statesman of Haiti.** La Dessalinienne, the national anthem of Haiti named in his honor.** Arrondissement of Dessalines, a Haitian arrondissement in the Artibonite Department...
    
    
  • Grande Saline
  • Petite Rivière de l'Artibonite
    Petite Rivière de l'Artibonite
    Petite Rivière de l'Artibonite is a town in the Artibonite Department of Haiti. It is located in the Artibonite Valley.One of the important battles of the Haitian Revolution was fought here at Crete Pierrot wherein Jean-Jacques Dessalines ravaged the French army led by Rochambeau....
    
    

• Gonaïves Arrondissement
  Gonaïves Arrondissement
  Gonaïves is an arrondissement in the Artibonite Department of Haiti.It has 263,858 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Gonaïves Arrondissement start with the number 41.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:* Gonaïves...
  
  
  • Ennery
  • Estère
  • Gonaïves
    Gonaïves
    Gonaïves is a city in northern Haiti, the capital of the Artibonite Department. It has a population of about 104,825 people . The city's name derives from the original Amerindian name of Gonaibo. It is also known as Haïti's "independence city"...
    
    

• Gros Morne Arrondissement
  • Anse Rouge
  • Gros-Morne
  • Terre-Neuve

• Marmelade Arrondissement
  Marmelade Arrondissement
  Marmelade is an arrondissement in the Artibonite Department of Haiti.It has 120,193 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Marmelade Arrondissement start with the number 45.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:...
  
  
  • Marmelade
    Marmelade
    Marmelade is a town and former duchy in the Artibonite Department of Haïti. It is the chief town of the Marmelade Arrondissement, which also includes the commune of Saint Michel de l'Attalaye.Marmelade is the home town of Président René Préval...
    
    
  • Saint Michel de l'Attalaye

• Saint-Marc Arrondissement
  Saint-Marc Arrondissement
  Saint-Marc is an arrondissement in the Artibonite Department of Haiti.It has 268,499 inhabitants.Postal codes in the Saint-Marc Arrondissement start with the number 43.The arondissement consists of the following municipalities:...
  
  
  • La Chapelle
  • Saint-Marc
    Saint-Marc
    Saint-Marc is a coastal port town in western Haiti in the Artibonite Department. Its geographic coordinates are . At the 2003 Census the municipality had 160,181 inhabitants....
    
    
  • Verrettes
    Verrettes
    Verrettes is a municipality in the Saint-Marc Arrondissement, in the Artibonite Department of Haiti. It is located approximately 58 km north of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and has 48,724 inhabitants.- History :...