Two Years On, Haiti Still in Despair

Two years after Haiti was devastated by a magnitude 7 earthquake, international aid donors have delivered only about half of the billions of dollars promised for reconstruction, according to UN data.

Just $2.38bn (£1.5bn) â?? 53% â?? of the $4.5bn pledged for recovery programmes in 2010-11 has been delivered, figures from the UN special envoy for Haiti show.

While that is a rise from the 43% recorded last September, aid agencies and NGOs such as Oxfam and Save the Children this week warned of a "severe funding shortage â?¦ threatening recovery programmes in the country".

"There is a lot more we need to do to really get the Haitian people back on their feet," said Gareth Owen, humanitarian director of Save the Children.

In March 2010, two and a half months after the quake struck on 12 January, world leaders met in New York and pledged billions for recovery programmes.