A prior post provided some early thoughts on where the money is going and where it is coming from. I know see an interesting "make a table" function at Relief Web that presents data from the Financial Tracking System (FTS) of the UN. The page and the instructions are a little confusing, but here's the table I produced (I move to the second tab some text the table generates, sorted by recipient (called "appealing agency" awkwardly fy FTS, and I hid some columns to make the table tidier, but not date was removed). The figures are updated from the prior post and it has more details (as well as fewer acronyms). Please try out the make a table function and let me know if you get something different.
I think it is urgent that larger recipient groups begin re-granting to small NGOs in Haiti, especially in the countryside, to jump start relief efforts that are focused on the planting season, on decentralizing population, and on putting people to work. This should be tracked, too, so the grants are transparent and that we know where the money is finally going and for what.
The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) has a Haiti Relief and Reconstruction Watch blog set up. They note that the Federal Procurement Data System has set up a special page for accessing data on US government contracts in Haiti (note: you have to set up a free account to access the data). I have not had a chance to play with it yet, but CEPR discusses what they have learned on their page. Press and advoactes will be making lots of heat around for-profit contractors (especially those that have parent companies with financial interests in Haiti, or that have had scandals in their past) receiving money for work in Haiti.
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