Haiti needs $21M for emergency shelter protection services: UN agency

By Peter Kenny

GENEVA (AA) - The International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Red Cross on Tuesday said that armed violence in Haiti prevents increasing numbers of people from accessing essential services and called for more funding.

The IOM and the Haitian government have appealed for $21 million to “ensure better protection and shelter conditions” for tens of thousands of people newly displaced by gang violence in the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, since mid-August, a UN statement said.

Successive outbreaks of violence in Carrefour-Feuilles and Savanes Pistaches neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince have forced many to flee their homes, the statement said.

Increasingly, they are settling in improvised sites rather than host communities and families, facing additional vulnerabilities.

“Displacement severely risks the health, food and economic security of people, exposes them to gender-based violence, and puts pressure on local infrastructure and social cohesion within host communities,” said Philippe Branchat, IOM chief of mission in Haiti.

Nearly 200,000 people are internally displaced in Haiti, of which roughly 70,000 are in inadequate and precarious spontaneous settlements and collective centers, 31,000 are sleeping in the open air, and 34,000 are crammed into classrooms, according to IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) also said it will increase its humanitarian efforts in Haiti in 2024, focusing on enabling humanitarian access for people most affected by armed violence.

- Facilities stopped operating

The Red Cross said many health facilities have stopped operating due to insecurity and a lack of personnel despite the spike in the number of people wounded by weapons.

In response to the growing needs, the ICRC said it will increase its humanitarian efforts in Haiti in 2024, centered on enabling humanitarian access for people most affected by armed violence.

Robert Mardini, the ICRC’s director-general, completed a two-day visit in Haiti on Tuesday to see the humanitarian impact of armed violence on people living there and to discuss how to increase coordination with other stakeholders.

“All too often people wounded in violence can’t get to the hospital in a timely manner, in part because ambulances can’t circulate in areas affected by armed violence,” Mardini said.

“Our priority is to strengthen access and support to vital services in places like Cité Soleil, where few humanitarian organizations are present, by speaking with weapon bearers and coordinating with local actors.”

During the visit, Mardini met with Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry and other officials, UN representatives, emergency first responders, and community leaders to discuss urgent humanitarian needs and the work of the Red Cross.