Update on OAS Efforts in Support of Haiti (as of January 21, 2010)

Haiti’s Interior Minister Paul Antoine Bien-Aimé has indicated that the Haitian government plans to re-house some 400,000 survivors of the January 12 earthquake in tent cities on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince. This is one of the measures being considered to ease the burden on the estimated 1.5 million homeless people.  Initially, camps for 100,000 will be established in 10 settlements near the suburb of Croix Des Bouquets.  It is estimated that around 500,000 people are currently living outdoors in 447 improvised camps in Port-au-Prince.

Communication and Coordination

  • The government of Haiti has created six working groups comprised of civil society and government officials to work in the areas of health, food aid and water, fuel and energy, provisional shelters, reconstruction, and security. Despite the current challenges, the Government has managed to distribute 25 000 hot meals daily through the national program of school canteens (PNCS) and more than 1500 portions of food aid by mobile canteens distributed by the World Food Program; as well as water to 150 accommodation sites (out of 300), i.e. 100 000 gallons (or 380m3) of potable water.
  • The General Secretariat is pleased to announce today that all staff members of the OAS General Secretariat working in Haiti have now been accounted for. The information available indicates that one OAS staffer perished in the earthquake. Many more were injured and have suffered serious loss of family and property.  The OAS General Secretariat will be working to channel support to those staff members that have been affected by the earthquake.

Inter-American System/International Support

  • The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) has stepped forward to indicate that its office in Haiti, which was not damaged by the earthquake, would be made available for the use of Haiti’s Ministry of Agriculture and relief agencies that need a place out of which to work. IICA is coordinating its own assistance efforts from its office in Santo Domingo. An IICA task force is assessing damage to the rural and agricultural sector.  The task force will share its initial assessment report next week with organizations interested in rebuilding the rural sector and agriculture.  The Minister of Agriculture and IICA have engaged in discussions in determining priorities for the agriculture sector (e.g. the planting of annual crops such as beans, corn, rice, yams, sweet potatoes and sorghum) for the spring planting season which begins in March and ends in May.  This season accounts for 60 percent of Haiti's national agricultural production.
  • PAHO reports that a team of epidemiologists is on its way to Port-au-Prince to assess communicable diseases.  Working with the government of the Dominican Republic, PAHO/WHO has mobilized three sanitary engineers to evaluate the hospitals and temporary shelters in Jimaní. PAHO/WHO has also compiled and mapped information regarding the status of health facilities in Haiti after the earthquake.
  • European Union institutions and member states have offered more than €400 million ($572 million) in emergency and longer-term assistance to Haiti after the earthquake in the Caribbean country.  EU Aid and Development Commissioner Karel de Gucht said the aid would include €137 million ($196 million) for short-term needs and at least €200 million ($286 million) for the medium and longer-term.  A Commission spokesman also said an additional €92 million ($132 million) would be provided by EU member states. EU ministers are considering a French proposal for an international donors’ conference.


USEFUL CONTACT INFORMATION

Information on missing relatives, friends and colleagues may be found at the following sites:
ICRC: http://www.familylinks.icrc.org/WFL_HTI.NSF/Bottin?OpenView&StartKey=a
CNN: www.cnn.com/haitimissing


OAS SUPPORT AND RESPONSE TO HAITI (as of 01/21/10)

Member States & Secretariat Financial support in US$ Humanitarian assistance
Total Total contribution to date $170 million in financial and humanitarian assistance.  208 tons of supplies and humanitarian assistance
search  & rescue and medical experts
OAS Secretariat $100,000.00 (additional million announced) Establishment of the Situation Room to provide up to the minute information; regular coordination meetings with the other inter-American institutions
Antigua & Barbuda $38,000 (EC 100,000) Defense force; Search & Rescue unit on standby
Argentina   Military helicopters/airplanes; the Argentine Air Force Field Hospital providing medical assistance, medical personnel and medical supplies, water, water purification equipment
Bahamas   2 Immigration Officers, 50 Defense Force Officers, 8 police officers and a Red Cross team to receive Haitian refugees
Barbados   Needs assessment team
Belize   1 container of food and clothing;  31 Belizean to participate in CARICOM CDEMA deployment to Haiti
Bolivia   50 tons of rice; 200 bags of blood and 600 bags of plasma,
Brazil $15 million in humanitarian assistance
$130,000 to World Food Program
$100,000 to Haitian UN Population Fund
$250,000 to the FAO for Haiti 		7 military planes carrying: 60 specialists in disaster response; rescue dogs, 60.2 tons of food, 18.5 tons of medications, 14.3 tons of water, 32.5 tons of shelter and other items including an emergency portable hospital. Flights carrying personnel, food items, medications and mobile hospital, rescue teams, disaster relief specialists, 28 tons of water and food, 30 tons of supplies, firemen and rescue dogs, 1 military ship, water treatment equipment
Canada $135 million (including $50 million in matching funds for public donations) Warships, planes, helicopters; reconnaissance team with Mil guards, consular staff, and relief supplies
Chile   15 tons of medical aid; medical personnel/rescue team; sending 2 planes of assistance
Colombia   Medicine, mobile military hospital, health personnel, 20 search experts, (1) airplane, 35 firemen, water,  clothing
Costa Rica   61 person rescue team, doctors, security personnel, medicine, food supplies
Dominica   Bottled water & dried goods; and police support
Dominican Republic   Support to diplomats and international agencies based in Haiti; sending humanitarian aid contingent; and  set up “border logistic zone” to facilitate transit of aid; hospitals available; 39 trucks of food dispatched; 110 cooks, 8 mobile clinics, 35 doctors, and telecom technicians.
El Salvador   4 members of the El Salvadorian Red Cross and one rescue dogs; 37 tons of food and water and 17 tons of cream soups.
Ecuador   1 C130 plane from Air Force with:  6 tons of supplies, 4 experts in risk management, 6 police officers and 4 military officers, 11 volunteers from Red Cross, 13 rescuers, and A second airplane expected within 2 weeks.
Grenada $100,000 Rescue and relief workers
Guatemala   4 officers, 24 search and rescue experts
Guyana $1 million Established a Coordinating Committee for reconstruction efforts in Haiti
Jamaica   Coordinating Centre for CARICOM donations, emergency personnel, medical facilities; 10 members of the Jamaica Fire Brigade have been dispatched to Haiti; 159 members of the Jamaica Defense Force (JDF) currently stationed in Port-au-Prince; the JDF medical team has established a clinic; a team of 21 medical personnel; two JDF Coast Guard vessels have been used to transport troops and medical and relief supplies, Air Jamaica has provided flights to transport troops and medical personnel to Haiti; government has offered the Norman Manley Airport as a holding area for aircraft while they await clearance for landing at the Port-au-Prince airport
Mexico $8 million 10 aircraft; 2 ships  (one of which is a hospital ship); 208 experts in search and rescue, structural damage assessments,  1500 tons of humanitarian supplies, including water food and medical supplies, telecommunication equipment, search and rescue equipment, ambulance and a crane.
Nicaragua   2 AN-26 aircraft with a second shipment of food and medicine (9000lbs  of medicine, 6000lbs of rice, beans, oil and soy milk for children and 8 Nicaraguan medical doctors to reinforce and rotate with the team already in Port-au-Prince;  humanitarian team including experts on damage assessment, medical assistance, and civil defense
Panama   One airplane with: material supplies; rescuers, nurses, experts in infrastructure, rescue team with dogs; 2500 bags of 13.5 kg each of food. Another plane with donated supplies. 8 vans of material to set up 20 centers of operation or temporary government offices.
Paraguay   Rescue team, trauma surgeons, medical experts, blankets, 56,000 kilos of food
Peru   5 tons of medicine and medical material, 58 tons of food, 15 tons of emergency supplies, 28 firefighters, 18 doctors and 2 rescue dogs
St. Kitts & Nevis   Established a Solidarity Fund for Haiti
St. Lucia $500,000 Sending assessment team
St. Vincent & Grenadines   Shipment of food and bottled water (public and private sector cooperation). Other shipments will be sent soon.
Suriname $1 million in aid  
Trinidad & Tobago $1 million  
United States $100 million 3,500 soldiers, 2,200 marines; Aircraft carrier with approximately 4000 sailors and 3 additional ships including hospital ship (USNS Comfort)
Uruguay   Uruguayans attached to MINUSTAH assisting  in rescue efforts
Venezuela   26 tons of medicines, food, water and medical equipment, 75 rescue personnel, 30 volunteer medical personnel,  fuel