January 25, 2010

Wind power could play key role in Haiti reconstruction

MONTREAL

Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon says wind power could play a key role in Haiti’s reconstruction. Cannon says technology will be an important element of bringing the Caribbean island country back from the Jan. 12 earthquake that has left much of it in ruins.

With Haiti virtually denuded of its forests, the minister said before today’s conference on Haitian reconstruction that wind power could reduce the country's dependence on fossil fuels.

Cannon says planners could also look at the latest technologies in earthquake-resistant construction before rebuilding the devastated country.

He says Haiti and those helping in its reconstruction need to seize upon the opportunity to make the impoverished country something significantly more than it was.

Monday’s Montreal conference brings together foreign ministers from more than a dozen countries, notably U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, along with eight international bodies including banks and six major non-governmental organizations.

Some 200,000 are believed to have been killed in the magnitude-7.3 quake, including at least 20 Canadians confirmed. Another 181 Canadians are missing.

Ottawa says Canadian aircraft have evacuated 2,424 people aboard 27 flights.

The Red Cross was sounding a note of optimism as the talks began.

“This is a huge opportunity to really build stronger indigenous Haitian organizations that can serve the Haitian people,” Susan Johnson, director general of international operations at the Canadian Red Cross, told The Canadian Press.

NGOs like the Red Cross were to feature prominently in the first round of discussions, where they are to provide an update of the situation on the ground in Haiti.

Cannon is hosting the talks but all participants want Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive to play a lead role.

Cannon called the talks a “critical step on the road to recovery” that would lead to a larger donor’s conference in the near future, when actual dollars would be pledged.

Haiti is the second-largest recipient of Canadian aid spending, after Afghanistan.

Ottawa pledged $555 million over five years in 2006, and many expect that number to rise once the international roadmap for Haiti emerges after Monday's opening round of talks. Canada committed $1.9 billion to Afghanistan for 2001-2011.

-Canadian Press

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