Canada cancels Haiti's $2.3M debt

Canada has cancelled Haiti's $2.3-million debt to the country, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said Thursday in Chile.

The move is part of the federal government's plan to help deeplyimpoverished countries focus their scarce resources on priorities such as health and education,instead of paying off debts, he said.

Flahertymade the announcementfrom Chile, where he is attending meetings of the Inter-American Development Bank governors and finance ministers of Latin America and the Caribbean.

So far, Canada has forgiven a total of $965 million worth of debt owed by poor countries, including all monies owed by Latin American and Caribbean nations.