UNITED NATIONS, CMC – The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Wednesday said it remained committed called to working with the international community in the development of Haiti, still recovering from a 2010 earthquake that killed an estimated 300,000 people and left more than a million others homeless.
Trinidad and Tobago’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Rodney Charles, told the United Nations Security Council debate on Haiti that the 15-member regional grouping was appreciative of the work done so far in the re-development of the French-speaking CARICOM country.
“For us, in CARICOM, the stability and economic development of Haiti is inextricably linked to the wider development agenda of our sub-region. Consequently, CARICOM lauds the efforts of MINUSTAH (United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti) which has facilitated increased stability in Haiti,” Charles said in his address on behalf of the CARICOM grouping
“For us, in CARICOM, the stability and economic development of Haiti is inextricably linked to the wider development agenda of our sub-region. Consequently, CARICOM lauds the efforts of MINUSTAH (United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti) which has facilitated increased stability in Haiti,” Charles said in his address on behalf of the CARICOM grouping.
He said CARICOM also welcomed the decision of the Security Council to renew MINUSTAH's mandate until October 15th, 2013, and support the recommendation of the Secretary General that the mandate be extended until 2014.
“CARICOM further welcomes plans to encourage investment which will play a critical role in spurring the social and economic development of Haiti”
But the Trinidad diplomat said that CARICOM countries “submit that international assistance must be aligned with Haiti's national priorities to ensure that there is appropriate national ownership of programmes intended to benefit the Haitian people.”