Representatives of more than 130 nations, non-governmental organizations and other groups filled the main hall at the United Nations headquarters in New York on 31 March when attending the donors’ conference to show solidarity with Haiti in the wake of the 12 January earthquake. The donors pledged contributions for the country’s long-term recovery and reconstruction. <\/p>\n
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon opened proceedings by calling for the wholesale rebuilding of Haiti, urging donors to provide $11.5 billion over the next 10 years for the reconstruction of the Caribbean nation. At the conference, dozens of nations and organizations pledged almost US$10 billion in immediate and long-term aid. This includes US$50 million pledged by the Dominican government, represented by Foreign Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso. <\/p>\n
Of that amount more than US$5 billion has been pledged for the next 18 months, well above the US$3.9 billion sought for that period.<\/p>\n
Speakers at the conference included Haitian President Rene Preval, US Secretary of <\/p>\n
State Hillary Clinton, and UN Special Envoy for Haiti Bill Clinton, who co-hosted the gathering. <\/p>\n
Speaker after speaker stressed the urgent need to meet the nearly $4 billion target for today’s conference, echoing the importance of “building back better.”<\/p>\n
World Bank President Robert Zoellick proposed a division of labor among international agencies to prevent “tripping over one another.” He also called for another meeting in six months’ time, coinciding with the annual high-level General Assembly debate in September to assess progress made in creating a new future for the country.<\/p>\n
International Monetary Fund director Dominique Strauss-Kahn voiced optimism that the country will see growth averaging 8% annually for the next five years. But this, Mr. Strauss-Kahn said, can only happen if “we really have the Haitian authorities in the driver’s seat.”<\/p>\n
At the conference, Towards a New Future in Haiti, the country’s Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive presented its needs and plans for recovery.<\/p>\n
“Rebuilding must ensure that no future catastrophes can have as devastating impact as has January’s earthquake, which left one third of Haiti’s 9 million-strong population in need”, said former Jamaican Prime Minister Percival James Patterson, representing CARICOM.<\/p>\n
See www.haiticonference.org\/documents.html<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Representatives of more than 130 nations, non-governmental organizations and other groups filled the main hall at the United Nations headquarters in New York on 31 March when attending the donors’ conference to show solidarity with Haiti in the wake of the 12 January earthquake. The donors pledged contributions for the country’s long-term recovery and reconstruction. … <\/p>\n