Thousands of people were queuing Friday before the offices of money-transfer firms in Port-au-Prince amid tight security measures.
Money-transfer firms were opened for the first time since the mammoth January 12 earthquake devastated the infrastructure in Port- au-Prince and the surrounding region. An estimated 200,000 people died, dpa reported.
Several banks in the Haitian capital were planning to also open their doors Saturday, employees told the German Press Agency dpa, to give locals access to their accounts and perhaps make life a little easier.
Despite the press of customers, security constraints forced the money-transfer firms to open for fewer hours than before the quake. Many Haitians regularly get remittances from their relatives abroad at such officese.
Some customers noted there was a 600-dollar limit on withdrawals.
In recent days, UN forces carried out operations under tight security to remove cash from bank buildings that were damaged by the quake, to avoid looting and to redistribute the funds to other bank offices, UN forces told dpa.
Although thousands of residents of Port-au-Prince are still gathered in makeshift outdoor camps after losing their homes in the quake, some businesses opened their doors to the public in recent days, particularly in the relatively-wealthy neighbourhood of Petionville.
Banks, finance operators reopen in Port-au-Prince
