A new agreement co-signed by the US and Haiti governments will pave the way for construction of new garment factories set to employ 10,000 people.

South Korean manufacturer Sae-A Trading will build the factories at one of two sites as part of plans to reinvigorate the garment manufacturing sector in the earthquake-hit country.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton signed the agreement alongside Haiti Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive and the chiefs of the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Finance Corporation, along with Sae-A chairman Woong-Ki Kim.

Sae-A Trading, which supplies major US retailers including Gap, Wal-Mart and Target, has a number of factories in central America and Asia.