WASHINGTON, October 26, 2010 - The World Bank Board of Directors today approved a US$30 million grant to Haiti to help residents of some of the most severely earthquake-affected areas in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area start repairing or rebuilding their homes, return to their communities in safe conditions, and resume economic activities. The program will benefit about 140,000 residents in the capital.
The January 12, 2010, earthquake destroyed an estimated 115,000 houses in and around Port-au-Prince and left some 14,500 others with severe damage and 167,000 with moderate damages forcing some 1.3 million people to seek shelter in temporary camps.
“Moving people out of camps and creating the conditions for their safe return to the original neighborhoods is one of the most pressing needs and is also key for improving their life condition and security situation,” said Ronald Baudin, Haiti’s Minister of Economy and Finance.
The Urban Community Driven Development Project (PRODEPUR) seeks to improve access to basic infrastructure and services, including removal of earthquake debris, repair and reconstruction of houses, and repair and improvement of community infrastructure. The project will work directly with the municipalities of Port-au-Prince (Carrefour-Feuille) and Delmas (Delmas 32).
The World Bank's support for housing reconstruction in Haiti is closely aligned with the Interim Haiti Reconstruction Commission's (IHRC) Draft Framework for Neighborhood Reconstruction and Upgrading, currently being reviewed by the Government of Haiti. The Framework aims to facilitate the return of displaced persons to their neighborhoods in order to rebuild their homes, communities and livelihoods.
Specifically, this US$30 million grant will support the following activities:
- Removal of about 60,000 cubic meters of building debris from public spaces and private plots.
- Cash grants for housing repair and reconstruction. This will finance about 5,000 cash grants for owner/resident-driven repair of houses assessed as structurally solid or on-site reconstruction of houses either destroyed or damaged beyond repair.
- Repair and improvement of community service infrastructure, including roads, walkways, drainage ditches and channels, solid waste management, water supply systems, sanitation facilities and related equipments, as well as the creation of community reconstruction centers.
- Advisory services to assist communities and local authorities in managing the debris removal and housing repair and reconstruction process efficiently and in compliance with seismic and other natural hazard safety standards. In addition, this component will help prepare medium- and long-term urban development and housing strategies.
“This project builds on the important concerted efforts being deployed by central and local governments as well as communities in Haiti’s reconstruction,” said Yvonne Tsikata, World Bank Director for the Caribbean. “This grant recognizes their collective efforts and provides additional resources so they can continue restoring basic services and creating economic opportunities for local residents.”
This grant follows-up on the results of the original US$15 million PRODEPUR project, which was approved in June 2008. Since the earthquake, the project has prioritized disaster related needs in targeted communities. These include the removal of debris from public spaces and access roads, as well as cleaning of local drainage ditches, providing temporary jobs to over 5,000 people in the neighborhoods of Cité Soleil, Martissant, Belair, and Delmas 32. Other emergency activities included the repair of neighborhood infrastructure damaged during the earthquake, including community kitchens and a community poultry farm.
About the World Bank Support to Haiti
To help Haiti recover from the January 12 earthquake, the World Bank Group has pledged US$479 million by mid-2011, including relieving Haiti’s debt to the World Bank, which has been completed. As of today, the World Bank has delivered over half of this support: US$91 million are available to Government in the form of new projects, over US$106 million have been disbursed, of which 40 percent is in the form of budget support. The remaining 60 percent has been spent on community reconstruction, transitional offices and equipment for the Ministry of Economy and Finance, repairing damaged bridges and roads, draining canals, paying tuition fees for school children and providing them with meals, strengthening Haiti’s resilience to disasters, and figuring out how to better manage and recycle debris.
Selected Concrete Results:
- Housed and equipped Ministry of Economy and Finance and Tax Office (over 500 staff), allowing salaries to be paid and revenues to be collected.
- Assessed structural state of 300,000 buildings in Port au Prince; these assessments are crucial to reconstruction planning.
- Removed 90,000 cubic meters of trash and debris from key drainage canals in Port-au-Prince, reducing flood risk to camps in the capital.
- Provided 50,000 solar lanterns to families in Port-au-Prince, increasing safety and reducing fire hazard.
- Provided food supplements to 200,000 children under 2, and health care services to pregnant and lactating women and infants in collaboration with the World Food Program and the Pan-American Health Organization.
- Funded 175,000 children to attend school and fed 80,000 school children a hot meal every day.
- Completed six water supply systems, benefiting 37,000 people in rural communities.
|
