Haiti earthquake "stole" up to half GDP — president
MOSCOW. February 26. KAZINFORM Damage inflicted by a powerful earthquake that hit Haiti in mid-January is comparable to 35-50% of the island nation's GDP, President Rene Preval said, Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.
A 7.0 magnitude earthquake followed by aftershocks devastated Haiti on January 12. Estimates as to the final death toll in the earthquake range to over 220,000 in and around the capital Port-au-Prince.
Preval was speaking at a meeting with his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at a UN military base in Port-au-Prince.
The United Nations has called on the international community to ultimately collect $1.44 billion in aid for the impoverished Caribbean nation. Part of the sum has been collected.
Haiti's nominal GDP totaled an estimated $7 billion in 2008, Kazinform cites RIA Novosti. See www.en.rian.ru for full version.