HA–3. Editorial Note
Between April 18 and May 2, 1958, a special Haitian Financial Mission, headed by Minister of Finance Fritz Thebaud, met in Washington with representatives of the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the International Cooperation Administration, the Export-Import Bank, and the Development Loan Fund to discuss Haiti’s outstanding economic and financial problems. As a result of these discussions, the following agreements were reached:
- 1)
- Haiti agreed to regularize its interest and amortization payments on a $27 million credit from the Export-Import Bank, which had been in default, and to reorganize the administration of the Organisme du development de la Vallee de l’Artibonite, or Artibonite Valley Authority, to the satisfaction of the Export-Import Bank. The Bank in return consented to finance a survey of the Artibonite project in order to ascertain the cost of satisfactorily completing it and also agreed to a resumption of construction on the project.
- 2)
- The International Cooperation Administration agreed to make available to Haiti $2 million in fiscal year 1958 special assistance funds for economic development projects such as roads, bridges, irrigation, and water supply.
- 3)
- The International Cooperation Administration agreed to increase its technical assistance program during fiscal year 1958 to $1.5 million, with increased program assistance slated for agriculture, health, education and public works.
- 4)
- The Development Loan Fund agreed to consider expeditiously financial assistance for sound project proposals from either the Haitian government or private sources for which financing was not otherwise available.
A summary of the agreement is in Department of State press release 240, printed in the Department of State Bulletin, May 26, 1958, pp. 880–881. A more detailed summary of the agreement is in a memorandum from Post to Rubottom of September 17, 1958, in file 838.00/9–1758. Additional Department of State documentation concerning the discussions is in the file 838.10.