ARTICLE - EU - $100 MILLION - RECONSTRUCTION

MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR: EU'S 100-MILLION EUROS RECONSTRUCTION FUNDING KEY TO ADVANCE DECENTRALIZATION
(PRNewswire) - By Ministry of the Interior of Haiti

PORT-AU-PRINCE - Following the European Union's 100-million euros in additional support for Haiti's reconstruction efforts, the nation's Minister of the Interior, Thierry Mayard-Paul, reaffirmed the importance of this international cooperation in advancing President Martelly's vision for decentralization. "The financing agreements with the European Union will help accelerate the reconstruction and development process, enabling Haitians better access to basic services including health, education and security, all across the country," said Mayard-Paul. "This is completely aligned with the government's community-based decentralization strategy, which seeks to build a safer and more prosperous Haiti, one community at a time, while moving towards the consolidation of democratic governance."

Minister Mayard-Paul stated that his decentralization plan focuses on actions and programs that are identified and agreed to by all local community stakeholders within Haiti. This includes renovation of public spaces; development of social infrastructure such as housing, education and health; civil protection, recreation opportunities for sports and culture, public services such as water and sanitation and prospective sustainable job creation.

The minister added that in advancing its goals for decentralization, Haiti is seeking to improve collaboration with the EU and other partners. "One of our goals is to establish a regular political dialogue with the EU to define and have a better understanding of the actions, vision and means available through partners."

The 100 million euros in supplementary reconstruction funds will follow a two-year plan that will be developed jointly and will address key priority areas, including improving access to functioning basic services and boosting economic development by building infrastructure and strengthening the State's institutional capacity.

In highlighting the significance of the agreements, Mayard-Paul thanked the European Union delegation for "not only consolidating the long-standing cooperation and relationship between the EU and Haiti, but also for cementing a sustainable partnership." He also described the financing agreements as "a welcomed accelerator to Haiti's sustainable renovation process that will allow President Martelly's vision of a socially just, economically free and politically independent Haiti, to come to fruition."

The EU delegation, led by EU Development Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs, met with Haitian President Martelly and cabinet members as part of a two-day visit to Haiti, where two strategic documents and two financing agreements between the Haitian government and the European Union were signed. These include a 100-million euros in supplemental reconstruction financing and 18-million euros for a bilateral cooperation program between Haiti and the Dominican Republic.