Above: Havana
By the Caribbean Journal staff
The governments of Cuba and Norway have signed a cooperation agreement aimed at implementing Norwegian aid donations to Haiti, according to the Norwegian Embassy in Havana.
The agreement was signed last week by Norwegian Ambassador to Cuba John Peter Opdahl, Cuban Vice Minister of Public Health Marcia Cobas and Cuba’s Vice Minister for Foreign Trade and Investment, Ileana Núñez.
The pact, which is the third tripartite agreement between Haiti, Cuba and Norway, focuses on strengthening the health system in Haiti, particularly the fight against cholera, which has recently emerged in Cuba.
Recent reports indicated that the outbreak had been controlled.
Opdahl was accredited by Haiti President Michel Martelly in late May.
Norway will contribute $800,000 under the agreement, and will concentrate and Haiti’s southern region.
Norway has contributed a total of $2.5 million under the three agreements to support Cuba’s Medical Brigade in Haiti.
In March, Cuba and Haiti signed three technical assistance agreements.
Since Haiti’s January 2010 earthquake, a reported 3 million Haitians have been consulted by Cuban doctors, according to Haiti’s government.