By Nolan Strong
Haitian Hip-Hop star Wyclef Jean has announced the launch of Together for Haiti (Kombit Pou Ayiti), a new partnership that will provide food and jobs in response to the current food crisis, AllHipHop.com has learned.
The Grammy Award winning rapper’s Together for Haiti is a collaborative effort between Jean’s Yéle Haiti, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF).
Together for Haiti will also work with a number of non-governmental organizations and community groups to address the food crisis in Haiti, which is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.
Jean and a number of celebrities will be on hand during a press conference in New York tomorrow morning (May 20), where the rapper will officially announce the launch of Together For Haiti.
According to figures from the United Nations, the cost of food has climbed 53% in April, compared to the same time last year, due to the rising cost of fuel, weather issues and increased demands from the middle classes in India and China.
Also, a number of countries have been the exports of rice, resulting in riots in impoverished countries like Somalia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Haiti, where five people where killed during recent riots.
The price of rice is a major issue for Haiti, which imports almost 80% of its rice.
The country cannot grow enough food to feed the population, due to widespread deforestation, which has claimed over 97% of the country’s rainforest, according to reports.
Together for Haiti will work with various local agricultural organizations in an attempt to repair damaged soil and re-grow new vegetation.