An unrelenting series of crises has trapped vulnerable Haitians in a cycle of growing desperation, without access to food, fuel, markets, jobs and public services, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Friday.
As protection, healthcare and essential services break down, the violence and volatile political and economic crisis engulfing Haiti has rapidly deteriorated into what the UN has described overall as a humanitarian catastrophe.
Amid a deteriorating security situation in Haiti, UN Security-General António Guterres called on Sunday for the Security Council to consider deploying armed forces to help the country address immense humanitarian concerns.
The UN is supporting efforts by the Haitian Government to contain an outbreak of cholera following the confirmation of a positive case and the identification of other suspected cases around the capital, Port-au-Prince. In a statement issued on Monday, the UN chief said it was essential for all stakeholders to "work together in this time of crisis".
Escalating gang violence has set off a crisis that is threatening “the very foundations of the rule of law” in Haiti, according to Foreign Minister Jean Victor Geneus, who told UN delegates in New York on Saturday that the authorities’ efforts to maintain order and ease ongoing political tensions could only succeed with robust international support.
An escalation in what the UN is calling “violent civil unrest” in Haiti, and the subsequent blockading of roads across the country, is making it “very challenging for humanitarian partners to provide assistance” according to the UN Spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric.
With Haiti’s highways increasingly in the grip of gangs, aid delivery by ship is becoming increasingly critical. Captain Madeleine Habib, a shipping officer working for the World Food Programme in Haiti, spoke about her experiences ahead of World Humanitarian Day, which is marked annually on 19 August.
One year on from a devastating earthquake which struck Haiti, communities are rebuilding their lives, and aiming to be better prepared when future disasters strike.
United Nations humanitarian agencies have started delivering aid directly to people in Haiti following a recent spike in violence between rival gangs which has fueled a worsening crisis across the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The UN human rights office said on Saturday it was deeply concerned by worsening violence in and around the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince and rising abuse at the hands of heavily armed gangs, against vulnerable local communities.
