Haiti | The worst humanitarian crisis since the 2010 earthquake

The humanitarian and food crisis currently shaking Haiti is the worst since 2010, the year of the terrible earthquake of January 12, estimates Jean-Martin Bauer, director of the World Food Program (WFP), the UN agency responsible for food aid, who was passing through The Press Monday.

Many factors explain this new crisis, due to which almost 45% of Haitians (around 5 million people) are hungry. And the increase in violence between armed gangs in the country adds a lot of pressure to the ambient evil. Particularly because members of these gangs attack producers and other elements of the local food chain, says Mr. Bauer.

Earlier this year, the United Nations called for a response plan of 719 million from the international community to meet the needs. This is twice as much as in 2022, when the response plan called for 350 million. However, less than 30% of the 719 million requested have been raised as of today.

It is for this reason that Jean-Martin Bauer came on mission to Quebec and Montreal this week in the hope of raising awareness. Earlier this year, he also visited Europe and Washington to demand more aid.

In addition to making a media tour, Mr. Bauer must meet several interlocutors between now and the end of the week, including the Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie, Martine Biron, on Wednesday. M’s office^me Biron confirmed to us that this meeting will take place.

Homicides and kidnappings on the rise

Mr. Bauer’s visit to The Press also coincided with the publication of a report from Agence France-Presse indicating that the number of serious crimes reached records in Haiti this year.

In just three months, from 1^er July to September 30, the national police recorded 1,239 homicides in the country, twice as many as the same period in 2022, when 577 were recorded.

Also from July to September 2023, we noted 701 kidnappings, including 221 women, 8 girls and 18 boys, a jump of 244% over 2022.

Haitian farmers and other members of the country’s food industry are among the victims of this violence, notes Jean-Martin Bauer. “Armed groups attack traders’ trucks,” he says. They kidnap farmers, but also Madan Sara, these women who bring products from farms to markets. There are farms in Artibonite [région d’Haïti aux terres les plus fertiles] where production has stopped because the situation is too dangerous. Two of our offices were also attacked. »

As noted previously, other factors contribute to the current crisis in Haiti. Mr. Bauer names in turn the economic situation, with inflation of 40% and a devaluation of the currency, climatic events, including a drought at the start of the year and torrential rains in June, as well as a deterioration of the self-sufficiency in recent decades.

For Jean-Martin Bauer, the current situation is all the more distressing as the PAM constantly works to help local producers and entrepreneurs in the hope of maintaining an economic fabric.

“One of the things that WFP has succeeded in the last two years is increasing the percentage of local content in school canteen programs from 20 to 50%. This is done with small producers, peasant organizations. We have also set up a whole microinsurance program, he says proudly. However, it is essential to maintain these efforts. We must strengthen our actions with small producers so that people can make a living from their production. »

According to Marilyne Guèvremont, spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, Canada has, since 2022, provided more than $315 million in new funds for Haiti. “This aid concerns different sectors, including health, education, governance, security and the fight against corruption and impunity,” she said. This amount includes $13 million in humanitarian assistance provided by Canada in 2023 to meet the population’s most pressing needs. »

With Agence France-Presse