“Children in Haiti are being displaced at a rate distressing rhythm and scale“said UNICEF chief Catherine Russell. “Every time they are forced to flee, they lose not only their homes but also their opportunity to go to school, to be safe and to simply be children.”
‘Unprecedented’ displacement
Decades of shocks, from deadly earthquakes to political fragility and economic chaos, have led to one of the world’s most complex humanitarian emergencies in Haiti.
Armed gangs now control more than 85 percent of the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, as well as key roads, depriving families of food, healthcare and protection and forcing them to flee.
It is estimated that more than 2.7 million people, 1.6 million of whom are women and children, live under the control of armed groups. The report warns that the scale of displacement is unprecedented, as the number of refuge sites has skyrocketed to 246 across the country in the first half of this year alone.
Education under siege
In Port-au-Prince and its surroundings, classrooms have become targets and refuges. More than 1,600 schools were closed and 25 were taken over by gangs, depriving thousands of students of the opportunity to learn.
An additional barrier besides gang violence and school closures is the cost of education. According to the report, only 15 to 20 percent of schools are public, and even there families are still required to pay for textbooks and uniforms.
A call to action
UNICEF has treated more than 86,000 children with wasting (a life-threatening form of malnutrition) and is providing medical care to 117,000 people, providing clean water to 140,000, among other actions.
However, the agency’s work remains underfunded, and without an immediate injection of resources, critical programs will be severely limited, the agency says.
“The children of Haiti cannot wait,” Russell warned. “Like all children, they deserve the opportunity to be safe, healthy and live in peace.. It is up to us to act now for the children of Haiti.”
A mother holds her daughter in a makeshift shelter at a school after fleeing attacks by armed groups in Port-au-Prince.