By Joseph Guyler Delva

PORT-AU-PRINCE, July 20 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited the volatile Cite Soleil slum during a stop in Haiti on Friday and said he saw signs of progress in the impoverished Caribbean nation.

Harper was the first foreign leader in years to visit the teeming seaside slum that was a hotbed of political and gang violence during and after the rebellion that ousted Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 2004. He headed to Cite Soleil directly after arriving at the nearby airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince.

"This morning, I saw firsthand the progress achieved on the security front by the Haitian National Police and the U.N. troops during a visit to Cite Soleil," Harper said later at a news conference with Haitian President Rene Preval at the National Palace.

Canada has committed over $500 million in assistance to Haiti between 2006 and 2011, making it the country's second-largest donor behind the United States, Canadian officials said. Haiti is the second-leading recipient of Canadian aid behind Afghanistan.

Harper visited a slum hospital that received assistance from Canada, donating a blood-analyzing machine and shaking hands with children who came to receive medical care.

"We thank the prime minister for his support because this hospital is our life," said Marlene Joseph, a 22-year-old mother with her 4-month-old daughter on her lap.

Canada's popularity among Haitians took a heavy blow during and after the 2004 ouster of Aristide, who rose to the presidency by championing Haiti's poor masses but was later accused of despotism and corruption.

He fled on Feb. 29, 2004, in the face of an armed revolt and under intense international pressure to quit. Aristide's supporters accused Canada of joining the United States and France to push him into exile.

Preval lauded Canada's aid efforts for Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas and a key transit point for South American cocaine being shipped to the United States.

"Canadian aid is very important to us. It is respectful and non-arrogant and we are very grateful," said Preval, who promised to intensify the fight against drug trafficking and corruption.

Harper was expected to leave Haiti for Ottawa as he wrapped up a visit to Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Canadian leader said his government "was committed to reviving and expanding Canada's political, economic, social and security engagement throughout the Americas."

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