HAITI: Caribbean Unites Behind Recovery Plans

HAITI: Caribbean Unites Behind Recovery Plans, by Peter Richards, Inter Press News Agency, March 12, 2010 As he travels back to his headquarters in Washington, World Bank president Robert Zoellick must be painfully aware that Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries have very strong feelings on the redevelopment of Haiti following the Jan. 12 earthquake. Zoellick met with regional leaders on Thursday, the first of the two-day CARICOM intersessional summit. While Haitian President René Préval was not present, Caribbean leaders there pressed for a "designated development fund for Haiti where all the resources which have been pledged by various countries and institutions could be deposited into a special account". Dominica's Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, chair of the 15-member regional integration grouping, stressed that it was critical the Haitian people not be sidelined in the recovery and rebuilding process. More...