Haiti: Update on Progress by Fonkoze

Friends, I am passing this along with a recommendation, and as a special notes for readers who are not in the US: the best way to support Fonkoze from other countries, is to find a sponsoring charity, so that it can be made tax deductible in your area. If you find a good one, they may be willing to do a limited campaign in which they guarantee that 100% of funds are donated to Fonkoze, so that there is no charitable graft going on.

January 29, 2010


Dear Friend,

On behalf of the 200,000+ Fonkoze clients that touch approximately 1,000,000 Haitians, all of us in the Fonkoze Family appreciate your prayers, phone calls, emails and especially the donations and pledges that we have received in response to the devastating earthquake that ravaged Haiti on January 12th.

Fonkoze staff in Haiti, led by Anne Hastings, CEO of Fonkoze Financial Services, Carine Roenen, Director of Fonkoze, and the rest of the Fonkoze management team continue to amaze us with their ability to cope with yet another major catastrophe.

We are now in touch on a daily basis with Fonkoze's leadership in Haiti, where they have worked feverishly to contact and account for all employees, establish a temporary headquarters, and enter negotiations for permanent headquarters space. As of today, 37 out of 42 branches are operating and delivering essential services like money transfers and savings deposits.

More importantly, they have begun to assess and estimate what will be needed to assist and accompany clients and staff, and the costs to replace branches and equipment destroyed by this unprecedented natural disaster. In addition to the central office in Port-au-Prince, management estimates that nine branches will need to replaced and eight will require substantial repairs.

We have been updating our website daily. So, please continue to visit www.fonkoze.org for the latest information about the situation on the ground with Fonkoze and to contribute to the "Relief and Rehabilitation Fund."

Donations are urgently needed to serve our borrowers and clients by helping them re-establish their homes and families and their businesses. This will take time, but Fonkoze has a wealth of successful experience in responding to disasters in the past and has already made great strides in overcoming the latest disaster.

To date, we have received a little over $1.5 million in donations. Staff is feverishly working to determine how much financial support will be needed to help our clients who have basically lost everything.

Please make a donation now to our "Earthquake Relief and Rehabilitation Fund." Please do it today by mailing a check to Fonkoze USA, 50 F St., NW, Suite 810, Washington, DC 20001 or contribute online at www.fonkoze.org.

Sincerely,

Alex Counts, Chair, Fonkoze USA           

John Mercier, President, Fonkoze USA


P.S. Recent legislation has been enacted that will allow most U.S. donors to deduct contributions to Haiti relief on either their 2009 or 2010 tax return. Please consult with your accounting professional to confirm that you meet the qualifications.