I met up with Mike Foster, MP for Worcester and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development at the local Oxfam shop on Mealcheapen Street today.
He was there to support the Haiti Appeal, ten days after the devastating earthquake struck one of the world’s poorest nations.
Mel, the manager at the Worcester shop, told me that they have already raised over £2600, which is fantastic news! Of course, there is still so much to do in Haiti and the shop wants locals to keep making donations. They’re aiming to raise at least least £5000. If you can’t make it into your local shop, you can always click here to donate now.
While dealing with the immediate aftermath of the earthquake is Oxfam’s main concern at the moment, we must not let this disaster push Haiti into a black hole of debt in the long term. The IMF has said that they will work to cancel the rest of Haiti’s debt, which would help to lift such an enormous burden in a time of crisis, but we need your help now to make sure that they stick to their guns. Leaders are meeting in Montreal on Monday to decide on the amount of aid that they will give.
Please email the head of the IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn to demand that when leaders meet on Monday, they cancel Haiti’s debts immediately.