Haiti | World Food Programme

Haiti is experiencing a dramatic escalation in violence and protests as armed groups battle for territory and civilians come under attack.

Thousands of Haitians have been forced to flee their homes and violence is hindering access to food – a staggering 44 percent of Haiti’s population, or 4.35 million people, are acutely food insecure.

Roadblocks have led to shortages of food and fuel. Prices are skyrocketing, driving affordable meals out of reach for millions of families.

The south has seen an influx of people sheltering with family, after they were forced from their homes by violence in Port au Prince. Many host families don’t have the means to support new arrivals, and recent price hikes only make matters worse.

WFP plans to assist 2.4 million people in 2024. But current funding levels mean we risk being unable to reach nearly 1 million. WFP requires an investment of US$104.1 million through July 2024.

What the World Food Programme is doing to respond to the Haiti emergency

Emergency assistance: Through its emergency programmes, WFP provides unconditional food and cash assistance to vulnerable households. In 2023, WFP provided over US$80 million in cash-based transfers, 7,500 metric tons of food and over 1 million hot meals.
Emergency preparedness: WFP supports the Government with emergency food assistance as well as logistics and emergency telecommunications. Pre-positioning commodities in-country allows WFP to respond to sudden-onset disasters and crises to meet the needs of affected populations quickly, while additional assistance is planned and prepared for in later weeks, if needed. Fully stocked, the contingency stock allows WFP to feed up to 300,000 people with unconditional food assistance, including rice, beans and oil for one month.
Logistics: In Haiti, WFP has 25 trucks, 2 helicopters and 1 fixed-wing aircraft, and has access to maritime transport to support its operations, as well as other UN agencies, NGOs and governments entities. This has proved critical in accessing hard-to-reach locations as travel over land to certain parts of the country is unsafe. The provision of fuel was the most demanded service in 2022, due to recurring shortages in the country. In 2022, over 122,000 gallons were provided to 34 partners. WFP is also setting up a humanitarian corridor with the Dominican Republic, as well as providing part of its contingency stock, to be able to quickly dispatch humanitarian aid by land and sea and support its emergency response.
Resilience building: In parallel to the emergency response, WFP works on reinforcing the resilience of vulnerable people through asset creation and livelihood programmes. In 2022, 97 km of rural roads and 53 km of irrigation canals were rehabilitated, 28 metric tons of seeds were distributed and 4 mills for were established. In addition, 75,000 tree cuttings were planted, and 25,000 smallholder farmers supported through microinsurance coverage. WFP directly supported around 113,00 people through its resilience activities in 2022.