Donor countries were to meet in the Dominican Republican Wednesday for a summit on the international effort to rebuild Haiti, still struggling after being leveled by a massive January earthquake.
"It is the first meeting following a donors' conference held in New York on March 21, which received pledges of 10 billion dollars," Haiti's Finance and Economy Minister Ronald Beaudin told AFP.
The meeting, the "World Summit for the Future of Haiti" to be held in the resort town of Punta Cana, is to be attended by top officials from Europe and the Americas, with the goal of firming up international plans for the massive rebuilding effort and offers of financial support.
Beaudin said only Brazil has actually come through with its pledged donation, sending some 55 million dollars, and said he hoped other donors now will quickly follow suit.
"A mechanism to track the pledged monies has been put in place," he said.
Aid experts have said Haiti needs about 11.5 billion dollars for its anticipated decade-long rebuilding effort.
Delegations at the meeting from more than 50 countries were to make a full review of projected rebuilding plans and of monies collected so far, so that they can set more concrete deadlines in planning Haiti's reconstruction.
Among those to set to attend are former US president Bill Clinton and World Bank President Robert Zoellick.
Guatemalan diplomat Edmond Mulet, who heads the UN Stabilization Mission In Haiti (MINUSTAH), last week vowed to speed the creation of the Interim Commission for the Reconstruction of Haiti (ICRH), which is to oversee the rebuilding effort.
"To really get the reconstruction phase going, the ICRH has to quickly get down to the task of planning the rebuilding, to ensure efficient coordination of donor resources," Mulet told a press conference in Haiti.
Mulet said he expects that the organization will up be and running "in the next few days."
But, he cautioned, "it is important not to create a parallel structure (with the Haiti the government) but to make sure that its efforts reinforce the efforts of the the state — with full respect for Haiti's sovereignty," he said.
Beaudin also sought to allay growing fears among Haitians of being governed by foreign interests.
"On this score, there is no need for concern," Mulet said, pointing out that the ICRH will have only an 18-month mandate.
"After than time, it is the (Haitian government) that will be in charge of reconstruction," he said.
The secretary general of the Organization of American States, Jose Miguel Insulza, said in a statement on Monday that the effort to advance Haiti's reconstruction is "urgent" and "cannot be delayed."
"The Punta Cana summit will allow for a definition of a strategy of solidarity with this country that establishes a timeline and the political and technical aspects of international assistance," Insulza said.
Meanwhile, Mulet told AFP that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is urging countries to put in place favorable trade terms for Haitian businesses, to help speed Haiti's recovery.
"I believe it is essential that the commission focus on the situation of the middle class which has lost everything as a result of the quake," he said.
"The middle class, which has been the backbone of the country, should receive lines of credit at a favorable interest rate, so that they can relaunch their small and medium-sized businesses and rebuild their homes and offices" he said.
The World Bank announced Friday that it has canceled Haiti's remaining debt to help the impoverished country recover from the quake.
The Washington-based institution on Friday forgave a loan of 36 million dollars owed to the International Development Association (IDA)
"Haiti now has no further amounts payable to the World Bank," it said.
The IDA debt cancellation was mad possible by contributions from 13 member nations: Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
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