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Haiti Humanitarian Crisis

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Haiti is seeing growing rates of hunger and malnutrition amid an unprecedented descent into violence and growing insecurity.

Violence through all corridors of Haiti since Feb. 29, 2024, has particularly affected communities in and around the capital, Port-au-Prince. Heightened insecurity has also further compromised the humanitarian space and forced some organizations to operate under precarious security conditions.

Given the heightened violence and emergency, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) has been releasing situation reports in collaboration with humanitarian partners every few days.

Roughly 5.5 million people in Haiti, about half the population, were already in desperate need of humanitarian aid. The 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan released in late February requires $674 million to reach 3.6 million people and currently stands at just 6.5% funded. The violence and insecurity will only exacerbate pre-existing needs and funding.

(Photo: In Haiti, 5.5 million people require humanitarian aid, the crisis has worsened significantly in recent weeks, March 2024. Photo credit: US Department of State via X)

Since the assassination of former President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021, Haiti has faced increased levels of gang violence.

A lengthy delay to elections led to mass protests calling for Acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry’s removal since early February. This surge in violence took a new form on Feb. 29 when gang leader Jimmy Chérizier joined forces with other gangs to form a coalition and overthrow Henry. Armed gangs stormed prisons, leading thousands of prisoners to flee, and coordinated gang attacks across the capital led Haitian officials to declare a state of emergency and impose a nighttime curfew.

In a video message from Puerto Rico, Prime Minister Henry announced his resignation and the creation of a transitional presidential council to replace the government. There is no official timeline for the transition but, on March 27, the council released a statement, a sign that it may soon assume its official duties. The new council will be responsible for selecting a new prime minister. Prime Minister Henry remains out of Haiti and plans on resigning once the council is established.

Meanwhile, violence has continued amid widespread reports of sexual violence, kidnapping and killings. Millions have been caught in the storm of politics and violence, forcing many to face hunger, displacement and unmet health care needs.

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Key facts
Hunger

Haitians are experiencing a severe hunger crisis, made worse by the recent violence.

In March 2024, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) projected that nearly 5 million people will experience crisis and emergency levels of acute food insecurity until June 2024. Compared to estimates in September 2023, an additional 532,000 people are now projected to experience acute food insecurity. Almost all areas experiencing emergency levels of food insecurity are outside Port-au-Prince.

Source: IPC

As a net importer of food products, food prices are particularly vulnerable to disruptions in the food supply system. With ports and airports closed, including the land border with the Dominican Republic, hunger is primed to get much worse.

According to the Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET), a halt in imports and reduced market supplies and food products due to the current violence has resulted in an upward trend in food prices since February. Prices for staple food were atypically high; for example, vegetable oil prices were 75%, and rice, grains, and beans were 100% higher compared to the previous five-year average.

According to the World Food Programme (WFP), two in three households saw a significant drop in income and seven in ten departments reported higher food prices than in January.

Displacement

In their latest displacement monitor, IOM reported that over 53,000 people left Port-au-Prince to seek refuge in the provinces between March 8 and 27. Most were headed to the Grand Sud departments, where more than 116,000 people are already hosted.

The report emphasizes “that provinces do not have sufficient infrastructures and host communities do not have sufficient resources that can enable them to cope with these massive displacement flows coming from the capital.”

As of April 5, IOM identified 87 active sites hosting 89,007 people, 27 of which were very dense and crowded. In Port-au-Prince, people have created makeshift camps, primarily in schools (34) and churches (20).

Most alarmingly, 10,829 IDPs are female heads of households, while 961 are children heads of households. Additionally, 261 are presumed to be unaccompanied children.

Beyond the confines of Port-au-Prince, IOM found almost 360,000 people displaced nationwide.

Amid the violence, advocacy groups have called upon the Biden Administration to extend and redesignate “Temporary Protected Status” for Haiti, which expires in early August. Under this program, recipients can remain in the U.S. and work without fear of deportation.

The Dominican Republic has closed its land border with Haiti since the surge in violence. Despite ongoing conflict and insecurity, the Dominican Republic forcibly returned 13,000 people to Haiti in February 2024.

Health

The already weak health sector has been significantly impacted since Feb. 29, 2024. More than half of the medical facilities in Port-au-Prince are closed or not operating.

Hospitals run by humanitarian groups and churches are closing one by one due to low supply and access to resources. Blood supplies are low, while fuel to run generators is difficult to maintain due to transportation issues. Gangs have also looted and vandalized many medical facilities.

According to the latest UNOCHA report, the State University Hospital has remained closed since Feb. 29 despite opening briefly in March.

Within IDP sites, the World Health Organization (WHO), in partnership with the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), has supported mental health initiatives, hygiene and sensitization activities, and epidemiological surveillance. PAHO/WHO supports at least 22 IDP sites.

Humanitarian actors continue to provide health care assistance. MSF recently increased capacity at one of its hospitals; however, due to the airport’s closure, it cannot fly in more doctors.

Women and children

The effects of conflict and insecurity are felt hardest by women and children, who are left vulnerable to unmet health needs, sexual violence, harassment and exploitation.

A newly published U.N. Human Rights Office report on the human rights situation in Haiti found that it had sharply deteriorated between September 2023 and February 2024.

According to the report, gangs use sexual violence to punish and control people. In many cases, women were raped during gang attacks, and some were forced into exploitative sexual relations. Sexual violence is also used against hostages to coerce families into paying ransoms. Sexual violence remains severely underreported and goes unpunished.

The report also found that children are recruited into gangs and abused. Many are unable to leave out of fear of retaliation. Children are also used as messengers, lookouts, cooks, and involved in frontline attacks and activities. According to UNOCHA, nearly 600,000 children live in gang-controlled areas.

Due to the crippling health system and availability of facilities, the situation is particularly dire for pregnant women. About 3,000 are expected to give birth in Port-au-Prince in April 2024.

In addition to responding to immediate humanitarian needs, funding and engagements must also be directed in a way that contributes to long-term stability and durability by addressing the root causes of the crisis. Cadre de Liaison Inter-Organization, an alliance of 80 national and international nongovernmental organizations in Haiti, called upon international responses to strengthen coordination and localization.

As aid is desperately needed, Haitian residents and their advocates call upon humanitarian aid to support the works of local grassroots groups already helping civilians every day.

Without urgent funding, humanitarian partners say the aid operations will collapse.

Humanitarian access and protection

One of the biggest impediments to reaching communities and distributing aid is the lack of access for humanitarian organizations. Gang autonomy and control of Port-au-Prince and the Artibonite departments have significantly impacted humanitarian aid operations.

Continued humanitarian access is also vital to reach vulnerable populations in formal and informal IDP camps.

In addition to hampering humanitarian access, the violence and looting of humanitarian agencies’ supplies have led to evacuations of humanitarian staff personnel.

According to CARE International, the capacity of local actors is seriously challenged due to operational restraints. Despite this, staff have said, “Give us the means, and we will make sure we deliver, because we know how to manage those complicated situations.”

Securing humanitarian access will be an ongoing critical need as insecurity heightens. Funders can support this by advocating for access and practicing localization in their giving.

Food and livelihood support

Over 4 million Haitians require food aid, sometimes eating only once a day.

The few aid organizations that were able to restart operations after Feb. 29 have been unable to reach many communities due to roadblocks or low funding and supplies.

Since March 1, WFP has reached more than 500,000 people across the country and continues to distribute hot meals to people and children in schools, prioritizing locally purchased foods. However, food may run out by the end of April, with current stock enough to feed just 175,000 people for one month. Donors have been encouraged to tackle the rising need of hunger.

Outside of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s farming heartland, Artibonite Valley has been badly hit by gangs expanding into rural parts of the Grand-Anse peninsula.

The IPC recommends urgently restoring livelihoods and assets, focusing on agriculture and livestock input, rural credits, and material support.

Mercy Corps has been providing emergency cash assistance and operating in rural departments by buying from local providers and distributing seeds for the coming planting season. The organization, however, fears the lack of cash will hinder its’ efforts due to transportation issues and gang control of roads and airports.

Shelter and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

Given roadblocks and gang control of many transportation routes, people risk their lives by fleeing their homes in search of a safer haven.

In the 87 IDP camps, shelter, and water, sanitation and hygiene services were top priorities and needs. A survey found that residents in 23 sites were threatened with eviction. Additionally, almost 31% of IDPs must walk more than 10 minutes to access the nearest water source. Latrines are also only available in some IDP sites; 29 sites lack latrines, and just 49% are operational.

Despite access constraints and insecurity, it is imperative that humanitarian aid and partners reach IDP camps and those in transit to ensure the availability of shelter and WASH essentials. By providing assistance, support and resources to host communities and fleeing Haitians in rural areas, humanitarian organizations can help alleviate the burden on current infrastructures.

Health care

The health care system in Haiti was already collapsing before the current violence.

Haiti is one of five countries in the Americas to face severe health care staff shortages, including doctors, nurses and midwives. The country has .65 doctors and nurses per 1,000 people, which falls well below the WHO recommendation of 4.45 doctors and nurses per 1,000 people.

In the current state of violence, many residents, including health care staff, have fled in search of refuge outside of Port-au-Prince. Hospital workers have also been kidnapped on their way to work, raising alarms within the sector.

In addition to the dire need for medical staff, hospitals and medical facilities also need fuel to generate power for hospitals and medical supplies. The National Ambulance Centre’s referral system faces challenges due to the inability to access gang-controlled areas. Once again, access impediments and violence targeting hospital supplies and staff are significant obstacles to providing care to the wounded.

Health supplies, assistance and staff are critical ongoing needs in Haiti. Funders and humanitarian agencies must continue to support mental health initiatives, psychological support sessions and recreational therapy sessions.

Support for vulnerable groups

Even before the latest conflict in Haiti, the United Nations found a 50% increase in sexual violence between 2022 and 2023. Almost 80% of women and girls had reported being subject to some form of gender-based violence (GBV).

As risks of GBV increase in overcrowded settings, humanitarian agencies can mitigate some of the dangers, for example, by installing more lighting in IDP sites and ensuring the availability of latrines within each site.

The volatile situation remains a challenge for humanitarian access and reaching vulnerable populations. For example, the humanitarian partners, including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), were unable to distribute dignity kits and deploy mobile clinics to IDP sites due to insecurity and roadblocks. UNFPA’s current stocks are only sufficient for two months.

In addition to continued advocacy for humanitarian access, incorporating the ongoing needs of vulnerable groups, such as female and children heads of households in IDP sites, pregnant and nursing women, and unaccompanied children, can help inform humanitarian activities that meet their unique needs.

The Center for Disaster Philanthropy has a Global Recovery Fund that provides donors with an efficient, flexible solution to support recovery efforts for people affected by sudden and slow-onset disasters or protracted humanitarian emergencies worldwide.

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Philanthropic contributions

If you would like to make a donation to the CDP Global Recovery Fund, need help with your disaster-giving strategy or want to share how you’re responding to this disaster, please contact development.

(Photo: United States Marines deliver cases of food in support of Joint Task Force-Haiti for a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief mission near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Aug. 27, 2021. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Caleb Stelter)

Recovery updates

If you are a responding NGO, please send updates on how you are working in this crisis to Tanya Gulliver-Garcia. 

We welcome the republication of our content. Please credit the Center for Disaster Philanthropy.

Philanthropic and government support

CDP has made several grants through various funds to support disaster and crisis response and recovery in Haiti, including:

  • Through its Haiti Earthquake Recovery Fund, CDP awarded $505,000 to the Haitian Development Institute (HDI) in 2023 to work with community organizations in earthquake-affected regions and support efforts to build resilience through microgrants, capacity strengthening and disaster preparedness.
  • In 2022, CDP awarded a $250,000 grant from the COVID-19 Response Fund to Partners In Health (PIH), in collaboration with partner organization Zanmi Lasante (ZL), to pilot a new Test and Treat approach in Haiti (targeting a catchment population of 600,000) and establish a flexible and replicable primary care model for growth in rapid testing and corresponding outpatient treatment for COVID-19 that can reduce transmission, hospitalization, and death in Haiti.
  • CDP grantee partner AVSI received a $159,846 grant to mitigate the harmful effects of the devastating 2021 earthquake on 800 children by providing physical and psychosocial protection and promoting child development through informal education in eight child-friendly spaces.
  • Action Against Hunger received $450,000 in 2022 to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vulnerable communities in the earthquake-affected South department in Haiti by improving access to basic health, WASH and nutrition services for 104,560 people.

The United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund allocated $12 million to address the dire situation in Haiti. The fund will provide food, water, protection, health care and WASH support to displaced people and host communities.

The European Commission has allocated $21.7 million USD (20 million euros) to Haiti. The funding aims to address survival needs, strengthen the capacity of communities to respond to the crisis and improve coordination of humanitarian actors.

The U.S. government committed $33 million USD and an additional $25 million in humanitarian assistance. The initial $33 million will support WFP, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and nongovernmental partners to provide in-kind food assistance and health services, among other humanitarian activities. The U.S. remains the largest single donor of humanitarian assistance to Haiti.

On March 28, the U.S. Agency for International Development hosted a roundtable discussion on galvanizing additional support for Haiti with several philanthropic partners. Participants highlighted the criticality of donor collaboration in supporting the Haitian people.

On March 14, the United Nations announced the creation of an air corridor between Haiti and the Dominican Republic to ensure resources get into the country. This announcement came through the UN Integrated Office in Haiti, which said that in addition to the transport of aid, the air corridor would ensure the safe relocation of staff both in and out of the country.

More ways to help

As with most disasters and emergencies, cash donations are recommended by disaster experts as they allow for on-the-ground agencies to direct funds to the most significant area of need, support local economic recovery and ensure material donations do not detract from disaster recovery needs.

Donors can help in the following ways:

  • Prioritize investments in local organizations. Local humanitarian leaders and organizations play a vital role in providing immediate relief and setting the course for long-term equitable recovery in communities after a disaster or throughout a complex humanitarian crisis. However, these leaders and organizations are mostly under-resourced and underfunded. Grant to locally-led entities as much as possible.
  • Provide unrestricted core funding for vetted humanitarian NGO partners that support the HRP.This is an efficient way to ensure the best use of resources in a coordinated manner. Funding the NGOs that have contributed to the HRP ensures that resources are directed to support the plan and use humanitarian partners’ best knowledge.
  • Recognize there are places and ways that private philanthropy can help that other donors may not. Private funders can support nimble and innovative solutions that leverage or augment the larger humanitarian system response, either filling gaps or modeling change that, once tested and proven, can be taken to scale within the broader humanitarian response structure. Philanthropy can also provide sustainable funding to national and local organizations that support needed operational costs.
  • Understand that recovery is possible in protracted and complex crisis settings. Even while focusing on immediate needs, remember that there are early and long-term recovery needs, too. We know that people who have been affected by shocks in complex humanitarian contexts can recover, improve their situation and build their resilience to withstand future shocks without waiting until the crisis is over, which may take years. Recovery is possible, and funding will be needed for recovery and resilience efforts alongside humanitarian funding. Recovery will take a long time, and funding will be needed now and throughout.

Resources

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Complex Humanitarian Emergencies

Complex Humanitarian Emergencies

CHEs involve an acute emergency layered over ongoing instability. Multiple scenarios can cause CHEs, like the civil wars in Syria and Yemen, the man-made political crisis in Venezuela, or the public health crisis in Congo.

Internally Displaced People

Internally Displaced People

Internally displaced persons are those who have been forced to flee their homes, in particular as a result of armed conflict, generalized violence, violations of human rights or disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized border.

Localization

Localization

It is commonly acknowledged that all disasters start and end locally. Though there is no single definition, localization is a process of recognizing, respecting and strengthening the leadership by local authorities and the capacity of local civil society in humanitarian action to better address the needs of affected populations and to prepare for future humanitarian responses.