Attachments
HIGHLIGHTS
- Haiti faces one of the world's most complex humanitarian crises, characterized by a fragile political transition, escalating violence by armed groups, a socioeconomic collapse and severe environmental vulnerabilities. In 2025, an estimated 6 million people, including 3.3 million children, will require urgent humanitarian assistance in the face of intensifying crises of forced displacement, worsening food insecurity and rising malnutrition.
- UNICEF will deliver a rapid, safe and comprehensive humanitarian response in 2025, promoting cross-sectoral, sustainable and localized solutions. Vulnerable populations will gain access to life-saving water, sanitation and hygiene interventions – including cholera rapid-response – alongside essential services in education, health, nutrition and child protection, with a special focus on gender-based violence prevention and survivor support. UNICEF will also prioritize humanitarian cash transfers, disaster risk reduction and emergency preparedness.
- To reach Haiti's most vulnerable children, timely and flexible funding is critical. Therefore, UNICEF is requesting $272 million for 2025 to meet Haiti's growing humanitarian needs.
HUMANITARIAN SITUATION AND NEEDS
Haiti continues to face one of the world's most complex humanitarian crises, characterized by a fragile political transition (with no further elections scheduled until 2026), escalating violence by armed groups, a socioeconomic collapse and severe environmental risks. Although the Multinational Security Support mission, authorized by the Security Council to support security restoration within Haiti, has begun operations, it is only operating at half-capacity as of yearend 2024. Consequently, more than 80 per cent of Port-au-Prince remains under the control or influence of armed groups, with frequent clashes, forced displacement and significant protection risks for children, women and marginalized communities.
In 2025, an estimated 6 million people, including 3.3 million children, will require humanitarian assistance as compounding crises intensify. 5 Currently, 703,000 individuals, including more than 350,000 children, are internally displaced. While many are sheltered by host communities in the southern departments, most displaced people in Port-au-Prince live in overcrowded, unsanitary displacements sites.
Furthermore, armed group presence and control of all national routes continues to hamper humanitarian access throughout the country, isolating regions from the capital and driving up operational logistics costs. More than 5 million people face acute food insecurity, with emergency (Integrated Phase Classification [IPC] Phase 4) and famine (IPC Phase 5) pockets emerging, particularly among displaced populations. Malnutrition has reached emergency thresholds, with over 125,000 children under age 5 at risk of severe wasting.
Violence and insecurity have gravely impacted education, disrupting children's learning and increasing risks of recruitment by armed groups, social exclusion and gender-based violence. Up to 94 percent of women and girls face heightened risks of gender-based violence, compounded by limited access to essential social and protection services. During the 2023– 2024 school year, 919 schools were affected by violence and insecurity, with nearly half closing completely, impacting at least 50,000 students.
Despite the efforts of the Haitian government and partners, around 35 per cent of the Haitian population continues to lack access to safe drinking water. By mid-2024, critical WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) infrastructure in Ouest Department had become non-functional due to armed occupation and displacement. A persistent cholera outbreak, exacerbated by a collapsing health care system, inadequate hygiene practices and a lack of water and sanitation infrastructure, has resulted in more than 87,000 suspected cases (including 4,861 confirmed cases)since October 2022, despite efforts to control the outbreak.
Urgent needs remain as 1.2 million children and caregivers require nutrition assistance; 1.6 million children need protection services; 3.8 million people require access to safe water; and 1.5 million children and teachers need emergency education assistance.
In addition, Haiti’s high vulnerability to natural disasters including earthquakes, hurricanes, droughts and floods further intensifies the urgent need for resources. Despite some progress, investments in disaster preparedness remain insufficient to mitigate future risks effectively.