Bulgaria’s bTV is hosting a February 2 2010 four-hour telethon to raise funds for victims of the Haiti earthquake.
 
The telethon, starting at 8pm Sofia time, will feature politicians, business people, ambassadors, actors and musicians in a bid to get people to send money via text message to 1021 or by visiting the site of the telethon’s partner, unicef.bg, bTV said on February 2.
 
On January 31, Bulgarian National Television’s afternoon show hosted a telethon for Haiti, raising 33 400 leva through the 1255 number used by the Bulgarian Red Cross for donations.
 
The Bulgarian Red Cross is using the number and a dedicated bank account to raise funds for Haiti victims. As of February 2, donations to the Bulgarian Red Cross’s Haiti funds were understood to exceed 250 000 leva, and the campaign continues until February 15 2010.
 
Since the January 12 2010 earthquake, more than 480 000 people have fled the Haitian capital, where more than 75 per cent of the buildings were destroyed.
 
There have been warnings of further after-shocks, and serious concerns about aid getting through to those in need, and the way forward for the country’s reconstruction.
 
Bulgaria has joined in many other countries in sending a military medical team to help at a field hospital in Haiti.
 
The US military has resumed evacuation flights for critically injured Haitian earthquake victims to the United States for medical treatment, after flights were suspended last week in a dispute over where the patients would be treated and who would pay for their care.
 
The White House said that it had received assurances that the US and its international partners have the medical capacity to treat the injured Haitians, the Voice of America said.
 
World Bank president Robert Zoellick, in an opinion piece entitled How to rebuild Haiti, published in Politico and reposted on the World Bank website, said that "Haiti can’t be reconstructed by well-meaning outsiders. Donors must work hand in hand with the Haitian government and people. And the government and parliament must show leadership and a commitment to work together".
 
Donor support for reconstruction should be in the form of grants. More money must go through the budget so it can be linked to Haitian goals and building Haitian capacity, even if the early stages of work depend on actions by regional and international partners, Zoellick said
 
Others should follow the example of the World Bank and IMF in easing Haiti’s debt burden, he said, adding: "We need better coordinated aid; fewer feel-good donor projects; less flag-planting and strong oversight, transparency and accountability to instill confidence that the money will be used effectively".