Without urgent support in Haiti, acute food insecurity will rise
At the UN briefing on the Humanitarian Situation in Haiti held on 2 September, FAO Representative in Haiti José Luis Fernández appealed for urgent support in mobilizing US $20 million to support 150 000 farmers ahead of the winter agricultural season
Yesterday, the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) held a virtual briefing on the humanitarian situation in Haiti in an effort to guide attention and resource commitments to responding to the multi-faceted needs and urgencies in the country.
Speaking from Port-de-Prince was FAO Representative in Haiti, Jose Luis Fernández.
He stressed the urgency behind safeguarding food security, protecting agricultural livelihoods and rehabilitating productive capacities and infrastructure in Haiti, on the heels of the devastating earthquake of 14 August and the torrential rains that arrived just two days later from Tropical Storm Grace.
The back-to-back disasters only stand to exacerbate preexisting vulnerabilities, with preliminary reports indicating that damage to the agricultural sector has been widespread. Markets, storage and processing facilities, dairies, irrigation canals and rural roads have been destroyed.
With the 2021 winter agricultural season set to begin in October, “without urgent support now to help rural Haitians recover and resume food production, acute food security in the country will continue to rise,” Fernández said.
The compounded effects of political instability, socio-economic challenges and food insecurity continue to worsen an already precarious humanitarian situation. This has placed Haiti as one of the hunger hotspots according to the latest FAO-WFP early warnings outlook on acute food insecurity.
“Ensuring an effective humanitarian response to sustainably restore the food security of vulnerable affected households requires a combination of life-saving food assistance and rapid support to restore the agriculture productive capacities, protect agricultural-based livelihoods, and rehabilitate critical agricultural infrastructure,” the FAO Representative explained.
Rehabilitating livelihoods and resuming food production
Sixty percent of rural Haitians rely on agriculture for their livelihoods, Fernández said, adding that 4.4 million people (or 46 percent of the population) were already facing high acute food insecurity even before the earthquake and torrential rains arrived. Of these, 1.2 million face emergency (IPC-4) levels of food insecurity and 3.2 million face crisis level (IPC-3). What’s more, an estimated 217 000 children in Haiti suffer from moderate to severe acute malnutrition.
Against this backdrop and following the 14 August earthquake, the Humanitarian Flash Appeal for Haiti was launched last 25 August, under which FAO seeks at least USD 20 million to help, in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture, 150 000 rural farmers get back on their feet and resume producing food. “So far, we have not received any pledge to support their livelihoods,” Fernández stressed.
FAO’s response in Haiti is anchored in the belief that resilient livelihoods are rural populations’ best defense against hunger and malnutrition moving forward. Protecting these vulnerable groups now means that affected farmers and their local communities can begin their own food again and generating income.
“Humanitarian response alone is not enough to reduce risks and strengthen resilience over the longer term,” Fernández said, appealing to donors and resource partners continue investing in minimizing structural deficits and addressing the root causes of fragility and recurrent crisis in Haiti.
Related links
- Read this web story in French.
- Watch the recording of the briefing.
- Access the Flash Appeal here (English) and here (French).
- Read more about FAO's work in Haiti and about FAO's 2021 Humanitarian Response Plan for Haiti here.