The World Bank has made a donation of 120 million U.S. dollars for the transport sector in Haiti. The agreement was approved yesterday Friday, June 24, 2022 with the Government of Haiti. The money will finance the “Resilient Connectivity and Accessible Transportation Project in Haiti”.
The objective is to improve connectivity in the areas of the Southern Peninsula devastated by the earthquake of August 14, 2021. It also aims to strengthen urban mobility resilient to climate in the city of Cap-Haitian, according to the explanations of the Minister of Economy and Finance, Michel Patrick Boisvert.
He took the opportunity, on behalf of the government, to express his gratitude to the World Bank for this support, while promising to make an effective management of funds that will be made available.
The “Resilient Connectivity and Accessibility of Transport in Haiti Project”, RUTAP, is part of the implementation of the World Bank’s policy to accompany the Haitian government in the search for solutions to problems, said the head of operations in Haiti of the World Bank, Laurent Msellati.
Engineer Rosemond Pradel, head of the Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Communication, is pleased with this agreement. This sum will be of capital importance for the country in its approach to get out of its environmental and infrastructural vulnerability.
Rosemond Pradel assured that the Government will focus first on the South, in order to restore it after the devastating passage of the earthquake. The Ministry of Public Works will not forget the North, said Minister Rosemond Pradel, who said it will take into account the seismic and environmental fragility of the northern region.
The World Bank had announced $131 million for Haiti last May to improve Haiti’s infrastructure and its resilience to disasters. US$120 million will be allocated to the Haiti Resilient Connectivity and Urban Transport Accessibility Project. 11 million will be allocated to the Risk Management and Climate Resilience Project.
The World Bank is supporting Haiti in other areas including health and education. The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors had informed in mid-June that it had approved an additional $20 million in financing for the Haiti Primary Health Care Strengthening and Surveillance Project (PROSYS). A project aimed at expanding primary health care services in several areas and strengthening the capacity for disease surveillance, particularly cholera.
“Access to quality health care is fundamental to alleviating the cycle of poverty, strengthening Haiti’s human capital, and helping future generations reach their full potential,” had said Laurent Msellati, head of the World Bank’s operations in Haiti, who pointed out in passing, “Haiti has successfully eliminated cholera, with no cases detected in the last three years; however, additional efforts are needed in other areas, as less than half of children are fully vaccinated and only one-third of women give birth in health facilities.”
The World Bank intends to participate in the reconstruction of the health sector in the south, hit by the devastating earthquake of August 14.
This additional funding is a replenishment of funds allocated because of the emergency” said the World Bank.
The global financial body had already approved on May 16, 2019, a general amount of $ 70 million – $ 55 million from the International Development Association (IDA) and $ 15 million from the Global Finance Facility (GFF) for the Haitian health sector.
