UN hosts fund-raiser to rebuild Haiti

31 Mar 2010, 6:54 pm   -   Source: AAP
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The UN and the US will jointly host a fund-raiser for Haiti, seeking $US3.8 billion ($A4.13 billion) to help the Caribbean nation recover from an earthquake.

The United Nations and the United States will jointly host a major fund-raiser for Haiti, seeking $US3.8 billion ($A4.13 billion) to help the Caribbean nation recover from a devastating earthquake.

Some 138 countries, international bodies such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, non-governmental organisations and representatives of the Haitian diaspora will on Wednesday attend the "International Donors Conference Towards a New Future for Haiti" at UN headquarters.

The meeting is chaired by Haitian President Rene Preval, with UN chief Ban Ki-moon and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton serving as co-hosts.

Its aim: help the battered country - already the poorest in the Americas before the quake - "build back better" after the January 12 temblor levelled parts of its capital Port-au-Prince, killing at least 220,000 people and leaving 1.3 million homeless.

Helen Clark, administrator for the United Nations Development Program, said Wednesday's conference aimed "to raise around 3.8 billion dollars for the next 18 months or so."

The amount would represent a first installment on the estimated $US11.5 billion ($A12.51 billion) in aid needed for reconstruction over 10 years.

The meeting is to start at 9 am (1300 GMT) with remarks by Ban, Clinton and Preval.

Brazil, Canada, the European Union, France and Spain, all leading donors to Haiti, are serving as co-chairs.

During the pledging session, only countries offering donations will be allowed to speak and their statements will be limited to three minutes.

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