First grant of a US$100 million package for long-term reconstruction
WASHINGTON, June 8, 2017— The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved today a US$20 million grant to rehabilitate roads and bridges in southern Haiti, and strengthen the capacity of the country's civil protection to respond to disasters. This is the first grant of a US$100 million package of support mobilized by the International Development Association's (IDA) Crisis Response Window for reconstruction after the devastating impact of Hurricane Matthew. This financing complements the US$49.5 million mobilized for emergency use from Haiti's existing IDA resources in October 2016.
More than two million Haitians were affected by the hurricane, which struck on October 4, 2016. Reconstruction needs were assessed at US$2.2 billion or 25 percent of GDP.
"This financing from the World Bank comes at an important moment when the people of Haiti are slowly recovering from Hurricane Matthew. This will help strengthen the impact of national measures undertaken to mitigate hurricane impacts in the current context of limited domestic resources," said Jude Alix Patrick Salomon, Haiti’s Minister of Economics and Finances.
The disaster has impacted Haiti’s economy. The fiscal deficit is expected to widen substantially this year and economic growth has slowed to one percent. Haiti has faced natural disasters almost every year since 1971, losing on average two percent of GDP every year due to hydrometeorological events.
“Seven months after the storm, there are signs of progress, but this is just the beginning of a long journey to recovery,” said Mary Barton Dock, the World Bank’s Special Envoy for Haiti. “This funding from IDA's Crisis Response Window will not only help rebuild critical infrastructure and boost the economy, it will also help support Haiti's long-term climate resilience”.
The World Bank's Board of Directors is scheduled to consider the remaining 80 million dollars in the coming weeks.
Some of the initial results from the emergency response include:
Agriculture
· Two irrigation systems in Dory and D’Avezac have been cured and are being rehabilitated through a cash for work initiative;
· About 3,000 farmers have received ploughing services through a voucher program and 100 tons of seeds and fertilizer, which allowed them to plant on time for the winter harvest;
· 8,000 farmers are now receiving inputs and services for the spring campaign;
· The winter bean season has been completed and for the spring harvest about 5,000 hectares have been planted with various food crop in Les Anglais, Dubreuil, Chantal, D’Avezac, and Dory.
Disaster Risk Management
· A Rapid Damage and Losses Assessment was conducted by the Ministry of Economy and Finance 20 days after the Hurricane, with the support of the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and some UN agencies. A Post-Disaster Needs Assessment was also conducted by the Ministry of Planning three months after the Hurricane;
· Support provided to all 140 municipal civil protection teams to strengthen preparedness at the local level;
· Reestablishment of the emergency communication system in four departments through pilot emergency radio communication;
Education
· About 45 school roofs and school grounds are being rehabilitated;
· 11 semi-permanent hangars have been built to enable schools to reopen and increase their capacity in the short-term;
· 16,000 student kits, 900 teacher kits and 151 school kits have been distributed;
· Over 4,000 pieces of school furniture (benches, desks, blackboards, etc.) have been distributed in affected schools;
· 22,000 students in 90 schools are receiving a daily snack and hot meal in Grand’Anse, Sud and Nippes departments, as well as water-treatment and sanitation kits, soap, de-worming medication and vitamin A.
Energy
· About 200 schools in the South are being equipped with solar electricity
Health
· Since late October 2016, intensified epidemiological surveillance, scaled-up rapid response, water and sanitation interventions, and various cholera treatment activities have resulted in a continuous decrease in suspected new cases of cholera as well as of deaths caused by the disease;
· Medical supplies have been distributed to 90 affected health facilities, and routine immunization campaigns and vaccine “cold chain” distribution schemes in affected Departments have been re-established;
· 43 mobile clinics have been established to fill critical gaps in health service delivery while regular health facilities are being rehabilitated.
Transport
· A temporary bridge in Ladigue was put in place, providing safe all-weather access to the rest of the country for the 1.4 million people living in the three Southern departments;
· Labor intensive transport works are providing about 300,000 days of work to inhabitants of the South and the Grand’Anse departments and restoring connectivity in these departments.
Water and Sanitation
· 63 small town water supply systems in the departments of the South, Grand’ Anse and Nippes are being rehabilitated.
* The IDA Crisis Response Window is designed to help low-income countries recover from severe disasters and crises.
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