UNITED NATIONS SEEKS $35 MILLION FOR HAITI

UNITED NATIONS SEEKS $35 MILLION FOR HAITI

Port-au-Prince/New York/Geneva, 9 March (OCHA) -- The United Nations today launched a Flash Appeal for Haiti for $35 million to meet emergency humanitarian needs created by the recent violence that has engulfed the country.  The Appeal will fund humanitarian aid over six months for more than 3 million people, mostly women and children, out of a total population of 8.3 million. 

“The recent turmoil has made life even more precarious for the people of Haiti, who need aid now more than ever”, said Jan Egeland, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.  “To prevent more suffering, donors must respond quickly”, he added. 

The Flash Appeal aims to meet the immediate needs of the Haitian population.  Funding is urgently required for food aid, and for assistance in health, nutrition, water and sanitation.  In addition, the appeal seeks to help kick start rehabilitation through infrastructure repair, capacity-building, human rights initiatives, disarmament and conflict resolution.

The most affected regions of the country include Port-au-Prince, the North (Cap-Haïtien), Nort-West (Port-de-Paix), Centre (Hinche), Artibonite (Gonaïves), and South (Les Cayes).  Currently, the main problems facing the country include insecurity and looting, lack of access for humanitarian agencies, violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, governing the inviolability of health structures and lack of respect for humanitarian principles of neutrality and impartiality, precarious access to food and basic social services, and destruction of many public services.

United Nations agencies will work with both non-governmental organizations and government departments, in particular for food aid, education, and security services.  The Flash Appeal will be revised regularly following needs assessments and in accordance with the evolution of the crisis.

“Aid agencies on the ground can make an enormous difference in the lives of Haiti’s people, the poorest in the Western Hemisphere”, said Adama Guindo, United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Haiti.  “We need the support of people around the globe to be able to achieve this end”, he said.

This Flash Appeal describes programmes to be carried out in addition to the “Integrated Emergency Response Programme” (IERP) for Haiti, launched in April 2003 to cover an 18-month period.  In the IERP, the United Nations appealed for $84 million to address urgent needs for food security, improved water and sanitation, access to health and education, and mitigation of natural disasters.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, New York, tel.:  917-367 5126, mobile:  917-892 1679; Elizabeth Byrs, OCHA Geneva, tel.:  41 22 917 2653, mobile:  41(0) 79 473 4570.

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