Haitians hope to access funds

Haiti's commerce minister says the country is working with aid partners to get the shattered economy back on its feet. Banks still standing after the quake, will start operating from this weekend.

Hundreds of Haitians are already lining up outside a money transfer agency, hoping to access funds sent from family overseas.

The International Monetary Fund has been working with donors to get cash circulating in Haiti's economy, so people can buy necessities. But aid officials recognize the recovery challenge is enormous for the Caribbean nation already the poorest in the Western Hemisphere.

Haitians wait outside the Canadian Embassy in Port-au-Prince January 20, 2010. REUTERS/Marco Dormino/MINUSTAH/Handout