Haiti: Armed attacks and displacements in the Metropolitan Area of Port-au-Prince - Situation Report #6 (as of 25-29 November 2024)

HIGHLIGHTS

• Access to essential services remains a major challenge for displaced people in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area.
• Children, deprived of school and exposed to violence by armed groups, are particularly vulnerable.
• The humanitarian community continues with activities in support of local actors.
• The United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) resumed regular operations across the country on 25 November.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Although the centre of Port-au-Prince has experienced a relative calm since 25 November, the humanitarian situation remains critical for vulnerable populations, including displaced people. The latest multi-sectoral needs assessment in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince (ZMPAP), published before the recent violence in November, already highlighted the impact of insecurity on access to essential services such as health and education, as well as on an already fragile economy. Displaced people and those living in areas such as Cité Soleil and Croix-des-Bouquets continue to face widespread severe food insecurity.

Children, who account for 52 per cent of the displaced, are particularly affected. At least 21,000 of them are believed to have been displaced following the November 11 attacks in the metropolitan area. Deprived of access to education and extremely vulnerable, they become easy targets for armed groups. According to UNICEF, the recruitment of children by these groups has increased by 70 per cent in the space of a year.

Despite the challenges of persistent insecurity, humanitarian assistance continues with targeted actions to address the most urgent needs of vulnerable populations, including health, emergency food, access to water and the fight against malnutrition.

The United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), which operates internal flights for staff of local and international NGOs and the United Nations, resumed regular operations on 25 November.