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Haiti

Over the past decade, Haiti has been hit by no less than 20 large-scale natural disasters.

Chronic poverty, high population density, and a lack of long term planning and environmental management have meant that Haiti’s urban areas have developed without order, and have led to uncontrolled building in cities, deforestation and over-exploitation of farmland. What’s more, a series of political and security crises have prevented the state from anticipating or responding to natural disasters effectively.

The January 2010 earthquake in Haiti was unprecedented in its impact. Apart from nearly a quarter of a million deaths, the disaster took out almost the entire infrastructure of national government, destroyed the United Nations base, and left over a million people homeless.

Thanks to your amazing generosity, we were able to respond quickly. We raised over £5 million directly, and received an additional £3.3 million from the DEC. With our partners, we’ve responded to the immediate needs of the affected populations.

Perhaps the most important lesson of the earthquake was that it exposed just how vulnerable Haiti had become over the years. So although the cameras moved away, our work continues.

We support sister agencies and partners in disaster risk reduction efforts, addressing environmental concerns and protecting communities from the potential hazards that surround them.

Long after the immediate emergency response, we’re continuing to support those most vulnerable communities who are still dealing with the impacts of the earthquake; building permanent housing, and providing essential sanitation. And instead of rebuilding what was there before, we’re committed to “Building back better” – so that if another disaster happens, Haitians will be better placed to withstand it.

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Lettre d'Haiti "Les G8 doivent changer leur politique de destruction de ces pays, s'ils veulent réellement l'établissement d’un monde de paix, de sécurité et de justice."