WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- In response to the magnitude-7.0 earthquake that caused extensive damage and casualties in Haiti, the World Bank said on Wednesday it will provide an additional 100 million dollars in emergency grant funding to support recovery and reconstruction in the Caribbean nation.

A Haitian soldier looks at the badly damaged presidential palace after an earthquake in Port-au-Prince January 13, 2010. A major earthquake rocked Haiti, killing possibly thousands of people as it toppled the presidential palace and hillside shanties alike and left the Caribbean nation appealing for international help.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    "This is a shocking event and it is crucial that the international community supports the Haitian people at this critical time," said World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick.

    "The World Bank is mobilizing significant financial assistance and sending a team to help assess damage and reconstruction needs. Our thoughts are with the people of Haiti, our staff, and our UN colleagues," he said.

    In addition to new initiatives, the World Bank expects to utilize the capacity of existing projects, including those that focus on education and community-driven development, to provide assistance quickly and effectively.

    The World Bank is sending experts to work with the Haitian government and its international partners to assess needs and losses and plan for recovery and reconstruction.

    The Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) has allocated 250,000 dollars for this assessment. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group's private sector arm, stands ready to work with the private sector on reconstruction and is contacting its clients in Haiti to identify ways it can work with them to play a role in the reconstruction effort.

    Going forward, the World Bank plans to provide seed resources to establish a multi-donor trust fund, the Haiti Reconstruction Fund, to mobilize international support for recovery and reconstruction process.

    The new 100 million dollar funding is subject to approval by the World Bank's Board of Directors.

Photo taken on Jan. 13 shows houses knocked down by the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    There are currently 14 main World Bank projects active in Haiti in areas including disaster risk management, infrastructure, community-driven development, education, and economic governance. All current World Bank assistance to Haiti is in grant form.

    Since January 2005, the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank arm that provides interest-free credits and grants to the world's poorest countries, has provided a total of 308 million dollars for Haiti. In addition, trust funds administered by the World Bank have given more than 55 million dollars since 2003.



World Bank expresses strong support for Haiti following earthquake

    WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- After a magnitude-7.0 earthquake caused extensive damage and casualties in Haiti on Tuesday, World Bank President Robert Zoellick expressed profound sympathy for those affected and said that the institution is already mobilizing its resources to help the country respond to the catastrophe.

    "This is a shocking event and our thoughts are with the Haitian people at this terrible time," said Zoellick in a statement released on Wednesday morning. Full story

16 UN staffers confirmed dead in Haiti: Ban

    UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said here Wednesday that 16 UN staffers were confirmed dead in Haiti in the wake of Tuesday's devastating earthquake.

    The 16 include 11 Brazilians, one Argentine, three Jordanian police officers, and one Chadian officer, said Ban.Full story

Earthquake crushes thousands of buildings in Haiti

    SANTO DOMINGO, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- A major earthquake rocked Haiti on Tuesday, crushing thousands of buildings, including the presidential palace and the U.N. peacekeeping headquarters, and trapping untold numbers of people in the rubble of the capital city.

    The devastation from the magnitude-7.3 quake, the strongest ever recorded on the poor Caribbean island, was so complete that it seemed likely the death toll would run into the thousands, according to reports monitored here. Full story

"Scale of catastrophe in Haiti is very high," says UN peacekeeping chief   

    UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations deals with humanitarian crises all the time but the devastating earthquake in Haiti has stricken especially close to home, said the head of UN peacekeeping forces Alain Le Roy here Wednesday.

    With the number of fatalities among UN staff members rising, LeRoy said the emotion is "extremely high." Full story

Over 100 UN personnel trapped in collapsed headquarters in Haiti earthquake

    UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- A total of 100 to 150 UN personnel were trapped under the rubble of the main building of the UN mission in Port au Prince, Haiti, which collapsed in a powerful earthquake, UN officials said Wednesday.

    The UN staff members were still working at the headquarters of the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) when the earthquake struck, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told reporters at UN Headquarters. Full story