In an effort to keep the world's attention focused on earthquake-ravaged Haiti, former Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush both traveled to Port-au-Prince on Monday, March 22, 2010. Mr. Bush reminded the world that Haiti still needed help. The two former presidents head the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund which so far has received 37 million dollars in donations for relief and for the recontruction of Haiti. President Obama has donated a large portion ( $200,000 ) of his Nobel Prize money to this Fund.
President Clinton has been very active in encouraging investment in Haiti. He has taken personal responsibility for some of the failed policies that have led to Haiti's recent misery. When he was president, Mr. Clinton urged Haiti to lower its tariffs and to open its market for the importation of rice from the United States. This policy nearly destroyed Haiti's rice market. Today, Haiti is one of the largest importers of U. S. rice.