Congress is calling for the United States to take the lead in relieving earthquake-devastated Haiti of its estimated $828 million debt to international institutions. The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved and sent to President Barack Obama legislation that orders U.S. directors at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other global development institutions to use their votes and influence to cancel Haiti's debt. The legislation, approved earlier by the Senate, would urge the immediate and complete cancellation of all debt owed by Haiti to multinational institutions. It also would recommend that for the next five years, aid to Haiti be provided as grants rather than loans. Currently, Haiti owes about $447 million to the International Development Bank, $284 million to the IMF, $58 million to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and $39 million to the World Bank. Debt relief is one of several approaches to helping Haiti recover from the January 12 earthquake that killed about 230,000 people and left 1.3 million homeless. Congress is considering legislation that would provide about $2.8 billion in new aid, and the United Nations recently hosted a donors' conference in which almost 50 countries pledged about $9.9 billion in assistance.
