Brazil's Lula urges consumers to buy products made in Haiti

MADRID, Spain - Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wants consumers worldwide to help Haiti's economy by purchasing goods made in the country, according to Agence France-Presse. "We invite the major trading partners in Haiti to support the Haitian exports," he was quoted as saying in Spain's largest newspaper, El País. "We ask the contractors to resume their investment plans in this country. After the current emergency, Haiti will continue to face the challenge of ensuring a productive capacity that enables the development of the country." Lula's nation has led the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) since it was started in 2004. The Brazilian government recently sent 900 more troops to the impoverished nation to join the more than 1,200 Brazilian soldiers already stationed in Haiti, according to AFP. MINUSTAH has about 7,000 peacekeepers in Haiti, according to AFP. The massive, 7.0-magnitude earthquake killed more than 222,500 according to the Haitian government, but President René Préval said the death toll could reach 300,000 once all the bodies are pulled from the rubble.

Haitian government purchases 50,000 tents from China

The Haitian government has purchased 50,000 tents from China, but claims it requires at least 150,000 more if it's to provide makeshift homes for all the people left homeless because of the earthquake, according to Agence France-Presse. "We've purchased 50,000 tents from China for US$5 million, that's US$100 per unit. They'll be arriving here this week," Haitian President René Préval said at a recent media conference, according to AFP. It's crucial Haiti provides tents to its residents so they can have at least some sort of shelter for the rainy and hurricane seasons. Préval said that of the 1.2 million who are homeless, about 900,000 don't have any shelter. He's asked the international community for at least 200,000 more tents, according to AFP. Préval said he paid the Chinese out of the US$163 million fund Venezuela donated as part of the PetroCaribe agreement, and that there's about US$152 million remaining in the account, according to AFP.

Haiti to begin clearing the rubble

The Haitian government and its foreign partners are expected to begin clearing the rubble so homeless families can return to their residences or use the land to build temporary shelters, according to Haitian and United Nations officials. The massive project will employ private contractors to remove some of the debris, in addition to the demolition of structurally unsound buildings and the construction of new ones in the nation's capital, according to Reuters. The "Debris Management Plan," which was formulated by experts from the United Nations, the United States and representatives from other countries, is the next step in the rebuilding process after distribution stations for food, water and housing materials have been established for earthquake survivors, according to Reuters. The removal of debris is especially difficult because in addition to rubble, streets are packed with garbage, traders, displaced people and traffic, according to Reuters. "The city is so crowded that there are no open spaces to put people," said Charles Clermont, a member of the Haitian government commission leading the project, to Reuters. "Before the rainy season, we have to take the debris out, clear the drainage canals, demolish what needs to be demolished ... that will give us the room." The United Nations estimates the nation's capital had more than 250,000 buildings and homes that were damaged or destroyed by the earthquake, which equals about 63 million tons of rubble, according to Reuters.

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