The Republic of Haiti (or 'Ayiti' in the indigenous Taíno language) occupies the western-third of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. It lies southeast from Florida, between the islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico, and the country also includes many smaller islands such as La Gonâve, La Tortue (Tortuga), Les Cayemites, Île de Anacaona and La Grande Caye. The uninhabited island of Navasse is claimed by both Haiti and the United States.

A former French colony, Haiti became the first independent black republic and the only nation ever to form from a successful slave revolt. Haiti became the second non-native country in the Americas (after the United States) to declare its independence on January 1, 1804.

Haiti's tropical climate, mountainous country, history, location and culture once made it a potential tourist hotspot. However, decades of poverty, instability and violence, especially during the brutal dictatorships of the voodoo physician, Francois 'Papa Doc' Duvalier, and his son, Jean-Claude, 'Baby Doc', have all but destroyed this prospect and left Haiti the poorest nation in the Americas.