Amidst ongoing violence in Haiti, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has rapidly expanded its food assistance, reaching more than half a million people since the start of the current crisis in March this year. WFP is reaching vulnerable communities with food distributions including hot meals for people living in temporary shelters in conflict-affected Port-au-Prince, cash disbursements, and school meals.
Despite efforts to prioritize food purchases from local producers, WFP is concerned that its food stocks risk running out by the end of April. WFP has only enough food in the country to feed 175,000 people for one month. The closure of Haiti’s main port and airport in Port-au-Prince about a month ago has disrupted the flow of supplies into the country.
“WFP is doing everything possible to reach the most vulnerable people, but at the current rate, we will run out of food stocks by the end of April. We need the port in the capital to reopen immediately to bring in fresh supplies. We also need unimpeded access to transport food across the country to ensure the continuity of our programmes,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP’s Country Director in Haiti.
Key elements of WFP’s operations in Haiti since 1 March:
- WFP has provided food to over 500,000 people across the country.
- 560,000 hot meals were distributed to over 80,000 people in Port-au-Prince and other locations.
- 290,000 children received hot meals in schools, where WFP has prioritized locally purchased food.
- 80,000 people in the Grand Anse Department, where emergency levels of food insecurity (IPC4) were recently reported, received cash under WFP’s social protection program.
- WFP purchased over 520 metric tons of food from local producers, valued at approximately US$ 1 million, enough to feed more than 160,000 school children.
- WFP has a five-year roadmap to tackle hunger in Haiti, by working with the government to engage local farmers, providing cash transfers that stimulate the local economy, and building social safety nets that boost families’ resistance to shocks.
