Donor nations pledge $750 million for Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - International donors pledged US$750 million ($1.2 billion) today to help fund impoverished Haiti's economic recovery efforts for the next fiscal year.

Delegates from about 40 nations and financial institutions gathered in Port-au-Prince for a conference aimed at helping the turbulent and destitute Caribbean nation build social and economic stability.

Haiti's government had asked for US$540 million in immediate donations as part of an overall request for US$7 billion to pay for long-term efforts to improve security, build roads, improve health and agriculture and promote institutional reform in the poorest nation in the Americas.

The pledges for short-term funding were expected to clear the way for the newly elected government of President Rene Preval to submit a budget to parliament.

The donor community pledged US$1.3 billion in 2004 to help Haiti rebuild after an armed rebellion toppled the government of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, but the interim government that replaced Aristide complained that less than half that amount had actually been disbursed.

Participants in this week's meeting included delegates from the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the European Union and the US Agency for International Development. They planned to meet again in November in Madrid to consider long-term funding for Haiti.

- REUTERS