Haiti

Many Haitian institutions were laid in ruins. The Presidential Palace, the Supreme Court and 16 out of 18 government departments were struck by the earthquake. 18 000 government officials lost their lives, a large segment of whom were the administration in the various departments. Haiti was not spoilt for choice in good bureaucrats even before the quake. Many well-educated Haitians had long since relocated to Canada and the United States, and the poor in Haiti have been plagued by poor governance for 200 years. Now the country is going to be rebuilt, but by whom? Rhetoric about Haitian ownership notwithstanding, there is a real danger of foreign actors forcing their agenda on the country's authorities to achieve quick results, without seeking governmental permission. Norway will work to counteract this and contribute to the strengthening of the Haitian government; both central and regional.

Norway will contribute NOK 800 million in aid to Haiti over the next four years. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs meanwhile is bolstering efforts by appointing a special envoy for Haiti and establishing a separate Haiti team.

The funding primarily goes to four areas:

1. The prevention and management of humanitarian disasters

2. Sustainable management of natural resources

3. Protection of women and children, as well as the promotion of human rights

4. Dialogue and conflict prevention

The need for assistance over the next four years is estimated to be around NOK 70 billion.

The Norwegian initiative has a more long term perspective besides extensive humanitarian efforts for reconstruction. Focus will be on political dialogue and an integrated approach to environmental measures, forestation, agriculture and alternative energy, and with an emphasis on reduced vulnerability to humanitarian disasters. Inclusion and protection of women and children will be central to all Norwegian efforts.

Channels for support:

• Multilateral organisations
• Norwegian NGOs and civil society organisations in Haiti
• Funds from humanitarian and long-term budget items will be used

The Norwegian efforts are in line with the authorities' national action plan for reconstruction, "Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti", adopted at the donor conference in New York. The plan has a nation-building perspective broader than that of post-earthquake reconstruction.

Emphasis on Haitian ownership, coordination, focus on results, transparency and accountability will be the basis for the work in international forums and in the dialogue with authorities and the UN.

However, the international actors and the country's authorities have been criticized for the slow progress of the reconstruction work.

Humanitarian crisis

Haiti was also struck by a cholera epidemic after the earthquake. Norwegian Red Cross is among those working to cure the sick and halt the epidemic. One of the adopted measures was an innovative warning system using SMS to inform of actions to prevent outbreaks of disease and which sites were exposed to bad weather.

The last decade

Over the last ten years Norway has supported various projects in Haiti. The total aid to Haiti each year has been around NOK 30 million. Projects can be divided into three types:

Strengthening dialogue between political actors in Haiti and between actors in civil society in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.Projects aimed at stabilisation and conflict prevention.Projects aimed at strengthening the position of Haitian women.