A plan for Haiti: Haiti's government looks to reconstruction

Nearly a month after the devastating earthquake, Haiti's government is working to rebuild the country. Officials have toured a Colombian town seen as a model for post-quake reconstruction. Meanwhile, the Haitian President has arrived in Ecuador for a meeting to discuss his country's future.

The trip is a learning experience.

Haitian Interior Minister visited Armenia city in Colombia. Like today's Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, the Colombian city was destroyed by a huge earthquake in 1999. But it was soon rebuilt as the country set up a public body called FOREC to better coordinate reconstruction and donation efforts.

Nearly a month after the devastating earthquake, Haiti's government  is working to rebuild the country. Officials have toured a Colombian  town seen as a model for post-quake reconstruction. Meanwhile,  the Haitian President has arrived in Ecuador for a meeting to discuss his country's future.

Fabio Valencia, Colombian Interior Minister, said, "What we are proposing is a kind of FOREC international where the reconstruction can be carried out just as the Haitian people want it, but with each country assigned a responsibility under an umbrella organization and general plan."

The debate in Haiti on how to help those left homeless by the quake is becoming urgent as the country's rainy season approaches.

The Haitian minister says his government is planning to move some of the one million homeless people out of the capital.

Paul Antoine Bien-Aime, Haitian Interior Minister, said, "The decisions on reconstruction have not been completely defined. We know we are going to empty Port-au-Prince partly and take people to other areas. But we can't say we are going to shift the capital completely. We are going to look for safe ways to continue."

Also on Monday, Haitian President Rene Preval arrived in Ecuador to attend a meeting of the Union of South American Nations.

The meeting is expected to focus on helping rebuild Haiti.

The January the 12th earthquake killed more than 200,000 people and left more than one million people homeless.