ID :
101763
Fri, 01/22/2010 - 14:22
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/101763
The shortlink copeid
UN targets Haiti rebuilding
UNITED NATIONS, January 22 (Itar-Tass) -- The United Nations will
continue relief operations in earthquake-devastated Haiti, but will focus
on rebuilding the economy of the Caribbean nation through cash-for-work
program.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and United Nations Special Envoy Bill
Clinton stressed on Thursday the need to help get the Haitian economy back
on its feet as soon as possible, as emergency humanitarian assistance
continued in the hardest-hit areas.
The UN Development Program (UNDP) has already employed almost 400
Haitians to give the local economy a boost and swiftly deliver
urgently-needed humanitarian aid following the 7.0-magnitude quake on 12
January.
The cash-for-work program will be expanded to include another 700
people to remove rubble and bring essential infrastructure, such as
electricity, back online.
"It's really important to try to continue to get the immediate
emergency aid up to scale," Clinton told reporters following a meeting
with Ban at UN Headquarters.
"The cash-for-work program is the next step," he said. "It's really
important to give young people something positive to do and a lot of
people there want to be a part of rebuilding their country."
Haitians will be paid five dollars per hour.
"Through this cash-for-work program, we can employ many young men and
women who can really devote themselves to the early phase of recovery,"
said Ban, urging generous support for the $41 million appeal launched by
UNDP to support the program.
The Secretary-General added he is sending Emergency Relief Coordinator
John Holmes and UNDP Administrator Helen Clark to Montreal to attend a
ministerial conference on Haiti next Monday. In addition, the UN, together
with the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the European
Commission, are planning a post-disaster assessment mission for
reconstruction purposes.
Also on Thursday the World Bank announced it is waiving any payments
on Haiti's $38 million debt to the Bank for the next five years. At the
same time, it is working to find a way to cancel the remaining debt.
-0-nec
continue relief operations in earthquake-devastated Haiti, but will focus
on rebuilding the economy of the Caribbean nation through cash-for-work
program.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and United Nations Special Envoy Bill
Clinton stressed on Thursday the need to help get the Haitian economy back
on its feet as soon as possible, as emergency humanitarian assistance
continued in the hardest-hit areas.
The UN Development Program (UNDP) has already employed almost 400
Haitians to give the local economy a boost and swiftly deliver
urgently-needed humanitarian aid following the 7.0-magnitude quake on 12
January.
The cash-for-work program will be expanded to include another 700
people to remove rubble and bring essential infrastructure, such as
electricity, back online.
"It's really important to try to continue to get the immediate
emergency aid up to scale," Clinton told reporters following a meeting
with Ban at UN Headquarters.
"The cash-for-work program is the next step," he said. "It's really
important to give young people something positive to do and a lot of
people there want to be a part of rebuilding their country."
Haitians will be paid five dollars per hour.
"Through this cash-for-work program, we can employ many young men and
women who can really devote themselves to the early phase of recovery,"
said Ban, urging generous support for the $41 million appeal launched by
UNDP to support the program.
The Secretary-General added he is sending Emergency Relief Coordinator
John Holmes and UNDP Administrator Helen Clark to Montreal to attend a
ministerial conference on Haiti next Monday. In addition, the UN, together
with the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the European
Commission, are planning a post-disaster assessment mission for
reconstruction purposes.
Also on Thursday the World Bank announced it is waiving any payments
on Haiti's $38 million debt to the Bank for the next five years. At the
same time, it is working to find a way to cancel the remaining debt.
-0-nec
