LEOGANE, Haiti (AP) Bill Clinton has returned to Haiti on a new mission to boost its recovery from January's devastating earthquake.

The former US president is making his first visit to the Caribbean nation since he was named co-chair of the Interim Haiti Reconstruction Committee overseeing billions in aid.

He proposed credit programmes for small businesses at a meeting of community leaders yesterday in the coastal town of Leogane and pledged to negotiate with landowners to secure more space for housing.

Clinton was scheduled to fly to the neighbouring Dominican Republic later yesterday for the first meeting of the reconstruction panel he leads with Haiti's prime minister. The committee will oversee more than US$5.3 billion in donor pledges for the next 18 months.