Wyclef Jean may not be able to run for president of Haiti, but the musician is still focused on raising awareness on Haiti's continued efforts to rebuild. So in response to the upcoming anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Jean released a statement Wednesday that acknowledges the post-Katrina devastation New Orleans has suffered as well as the wreckage Haiti is still digging through after a disastrous earthquake in January, 2010. “The destruction that Katrina caused really struck home for me–so many brothers and sisters lost, and so many lives shattered,” Jean said in the statement. “I see a corollary to the vast destruction of the earthquake that Port-au-Prince suffered just seven months ago: Like the people of the Gulf Coast, my countrymen in Haiti have been forced to witness more despair than anyone should have to bear,” he went on. “And in New Orleans, as it is in Haiti, so much of the loss was suffered by those who had little to begin with.” Jean noted that the Crescent City is still rebuilding five years after the hurricane, and many are coming together to aid in the effort. “I’m so inspired by the scores of people–and companies–who have stepped in, and are still stepping in, to show their support for those who continue to struggle to get their lives back to ‘normal'," Jean said. “There is probably more rebuilding in this one week in New Orleans than there has been in Haiti in the seven months since the earthquake struck,” he added. “The corporate sponsors helping to redevelop New Orleans reinforces my thought that Haiti must be re-opened for business–and soon.” The former Fugee closed his statement with blessings and a request for prayer: “God bless the New Orleans natives who are still fighting to rebuild their neighborhoods, and their lives," he said, "and I ask all of them to say a prayer, in turn, for the Haitians who are still fighting to survive in my homeland.” Source: CNN