The Washington based financial institution which has been trying to assist in the recovery of the island’s economic worries agreed to the complete cancellation of the US 268 million dollars that formed a huge trunk of the Haiti’s outstanding debt to various organizations.
Following the devastating hurricane that crippled the island in January this year, the island has been struggling to restore normalcy to the lives of millions of Haitians, millions of whom are still without running water, electricity, basic health care, food, and employment.
World leaders and others assisting the island have for months been urging the IMF and other agencies to forgive Haiti’s debt, as part of the international effort to rebuild the country.
In announcing the cancellation of the debt, the IMF also disclosed that a new program to support reconstruction and economic growth will be initiated, as part of an overall strategy.
IMF Chief, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, has admonished donor nations to deliver on their promised financial support for the island. Earlier this year, in March, donor countries agreed to provide over 9.9 billion in aid, but only a trickle has made its way to the recovery work. Some 5.3 billion have been promised for disbursement over the next 18 months.
The January 12th earthquake killed over 300,000 and left some 1.6 homeless.