Media report on Haiti rebuilding effort after donor conference

Apr 3 2010

News outlets report on the implications and follow up after Wednesday's donor conference to aid Haiti's rebuilding effort.

Newsweek: "The next big challenge is figuring out how to apply the raised funds to fix not just Haiti's earthquake damage, but also the years of poverty and corruption that have plagued the nation ... The Haitian government and the international community will have a series of balancing acts to perform in the coming months as they rise to meet those mandates, not the least of which is ensuring that the money actually gets to Haiti." The magazine looks at some of the long-term "loftier goals" that could become "key objectives" if the promised aid reaches Haiti. Food self-sufficiency and the empowerment of women are among the listed goals (Interlandi, 4/1).

NPR's All Things Considered: "Many countries came to the conference with concerns that the Haitian government might have a difficult time mounting an effective reconstruction program, because of post-earthquake chaos and longstanding problems with corruption. But Haiti's prime minister, Jean-Max Bellerive, says the country is committed to transparency. 'I'm not going to hide the fact that we have a credibility problem,'" he said. "All the poor countries ... they have a problem of credibility," he added. According to Bellerive, Haiti must prove it has moved on from its days of dictatorship and must figure out how to balance long-term reconstruction with pressing short-term needs (Norris, 4/1).

ABC's World News With Diane Sawyer: "Since January's earthquake, Americans have already given $800.9 million in private donations to help the country rebuild. The money has gone to 23 charities that ABC News has been tracking. Only about 37 percent of the money has been spent. Nearly $588 million in donations is still sitting on the sidelines, as millions of Haitians continue to suffer," writes ABC in an examination of U.S. aid to Haiti after the earthquake. "There has been real progress, though, with U.S. dollars helping to fund the delivery of food to 4.3 million people and the delivery of more than 33,000 gallons of water to child care centers. The charities say that Americans who gave money should be confident that, by and large, it is being well-spent" (Harris, 4/1).