From U.S. Department of State: Some Details on the Upcoming International Donors' Conference Towards a New Future for Haiti

These pictures are from last year's conference, long before the earthquake, when Haiti was finally on a road to a sustainable domestic economy. Bill Clinton also participated last year (he played a dual role as special U.N. envoy to Haiti and as Head of The William Jefferson Clinton Foundation) , but as I remember, they spoke at two different ends of the day, Hillary in the morning, and Bill at night. Since Bill is now also representing the U.S. in the recovery effort (fund-raising with the invisible Geroge W. Bush), perhaps we will have a chance to see them together this year. Leave it to Bill Clinton to have acquired a third role in conjunction with Haiti!

International Donors' Conference Towards a New Future for Haiti

Office of the Spokesman

Washington, DC

March 16, 2010

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The United States, in cooperation with the Government of Haiti, will join the United Nations in co-hosting a ministerial-level International Donors’ Conference Towards a New Future for Haiti on March 31, 2010 in New York at UN Headquarters. After the outpouring of global support for the immediate needs of the people and Government of Haiti following the devastating earthquake on January 12, attention is now turning to the longer-term recovery and reconstruction needs of the country, even while the relief effort continues.
The International Donors’ Conference will be an opportunity for the international community to pledge new financial assistance to help Haiti rebuild, and to mobilize a truly global and sustained international effort to partner with Haiti. The Conference will focus on pledges of assistance for recovery and development, as distinct from the humanitarian assistance so generously provided by over 140 donors so far.
Priorities for assistance will be set by the Government of Haiti, which will present its strategy for recovery based on input from a Post-Disaster Needs Assessment led by the Government with the joint support of the United Nations, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, European Commission, and major donors.
This Donors’ Conference is just one step in mobilizing the broad international support that the government and people of Haiti must have in order to realize their vision of a stronger, vibrant Haiti emerging from this tragedy. We are proud to contribute to a broad-based effort that will integrate public and private international assistance with the contributions of a vigorous Haitian private sector, active engagement of non-governmental organizations, and widespread civic engagement. Preparation for the International Donors’ Conference thus includes broad-based consultations with key constituencies, including Haitian civil society, the Haitian Diaspora, the private sector, Haitian state and local government, non-governmental organizations, and stakeholders in the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH). Representatives from these consultations will report back to the plenary of the International Donors’ Conference.
The United States is pleased to be partnering with the United Nations in this effort in the interests of mobilizing a truly global response on behalf of Haiti.

CONFERENCE DETAILS
The International Donors’ Conference will be co-hosted by the United States and United Nations, in cooperation with the Government of Haiti. The Conference will be co-chaired by Brazil, Canada, the European Union, France, and Spain as leading donors to Haiti. The Conference will be held at UN Headquarters in New York on March 31, 2010. Delegations are encouraged to be represented at the ministerial level and will be invited to make brief statements summarizing their new pledges of recovery and reconstruction assistance. The Conference will be webcast live with select sessions open to other media.