It was last 12th of January when a violent earthquake threw Haiti into confusion, causing nearly half a million deaths. On the pages of Action for a United World News the spotlights still shine on areas where the others have been spent, and they contintinue to show how reconstruction goes on in this country which is perhaps the poorest of the Northern Hemisphere. AMU’s commitment, as that of other NGOs, is precious because it continues on after the initial crisis when the attention of public opinion began to wane and frustrate the initial successes.

Through a local organization – Action contre la Pauvreté (PACNE) – AMU, the New Families and Youth for a United World Movements, support a project for building a welcome center for displaced people. The work is already in an advanced stage and moving along with the installation of the utilities, like water. The selection of beneficiaries for the project is in the care of a committee which includes members of PACNE and representatives of the local community, such as the mayor and local pastor. Priority will be given to the most needy persons among those who, having lost everything, have fled to Mont Organisé, the area in which the welcome center has been built. Once these persons are able to return to the city or to more permanent dwellings, the building will be used to welcome the elderly, the sick, or persons who are alone.  Everything will be managed with absolute transparency by a specially elected commission. Obviously, the need and the difficulties are enormous and it will take years before the infrastructure and the economic system are able to  completely respond to the the needs of the people. For this reason, Amu will continue to evaluate new proposals and projects, which we will continue to report on.