WASHINGTON – Haiti’s debt approaches $2 billion dollars as it recovers from Hurricane Matthew and remembers the devastating earthquake that shattered the country seven years ago. After the 2010 earthquake, most of Haiti’s debt was wiped out following a campaign led by Jubilee USA. $300 million in Haiti’s debts were cancelled through a specially created International Monetary Fund (IMF) trust to aid low-income countries struck by natural disasters.
While Haiti received a $41.6 million interest-free loan from the IMF’s “Rapid Credit Facility” to help with Hurricane Matthew recovery, Haiti does not meet the IMF’s criteria to qualify for debt relief.
“Debt relief that Haiti received over the last ten years was essential to help one of…
Read the full article at: http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2017/01/13/seven-years-after-devastating-earthquake-haiti-struggles-debt-and-hurricane
