UNITED NATIONS, October 14 (IPS) – New figures from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) show that displacement has surged significantly in Haiti, deepening existing security and humanitarian crises in a country where nearly 90 percent of the capital is controlled by armed gangs.
“Children in Haiti are experiencing violence and displacement at a terrifying scale,” said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director. “Each time they are forced to flee, they lose not only their homes but also their chance to go to school, and simply to be children.”
More than 1.3 million people have been displaced due to rising insecurity, including over 680,000 children—twice as many as last year—who have been forced from their homes by violence. The report notes that the scale of displacement in 2025 has reached “unprecedented” levels, with the number of displacement sites having soared to 246 nationwide. Thousands of children have been displaced multiple times as a result of heightened violence from armed gangs.
UNICEF’s latest Child Alert report highlights the fragile state of displacement shelters in Haiti as roughly 33 percent displacement shelters lack basic protection infrastructure. Women and children bear the brunt of this crisis, facing disproportionate levels of violence, exploitation, and abuse. Additionally, the UN notes that violations of children’s rights are a daily occurrence, especially in areas that are under the control of armed gangs.
It is estimated that over 2.7 million people, 1.6 million of whom are women and children, live under the control of armed gangs. The security situation in the vast majority of Haitian displacement shelters is dire, with the UN noting that gender-based violence is widespread and fear is particularly pervasive among an entire generation of children and adolescents.
“More children are being subjected to trafficking, exploitation and forced recruitment by the gangs,” said Volker Turk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR).“We can only imagine the long-term impact, for the children of Haiti, and for society as a whole.”
With most schools being used as displacement shelters, education in Haiti has been severely disrupted, affecting roughly half a million students. Over 1,600 schools were closed, and dozens were occupied by armed groups during the 2024–2025 school year. The education sector is also grappling with acute shortages of textbooks, learning materials, and qualified teachers.
“Nearly 1,600 schools have been attacked, occupied, or closed as a result of unrelenting violence, leaving more than one in four children out of the classroom,” said Giacomo Colarullo, UNICEF’s Emergencies Communications Officer. “ School is not only a place to learn, but a safe haven. When that disappears, we are risking the development and future of an entire generation.”
UNICEF estimates that more than 3.3 million children in Haiti are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, with over one million facing severe food insecurity. This year, an estimated 288,544 children under the age of five are projected to suffer from acute malnutrition. The worsening hunger crisis is largely driven by soaring staple food prices, which have made basic items unaffordable for most families, forcing many to skip meals or rely on nutrient-poor diets.
Additionally, widespread insecurity along border crossings and key access routes has severely restricted the delivery of humanitarian aid, cutting off access to nutrition, healthcare, and protection services. Aid workers continue to face high risks of violence while carrying out their duties
“Hunger is worsening at an alarming speed,” Colarullo said. “Less than half of health facilities in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince remain fully functional, leaving the same children often unable to reach the care they need to survive and thrive. UNICEF and partners continue to stay and deliver therapeutic food, mobile clinics and support for internally displaced families, but access and funding remain major obstacles.”
Conditions for children in Haiti have been further worsened by recent cuts to foreign aid and severe funding shortages for lifesaving humanitarian programs, including the World Food Programme (WFP), on which the country has long depended for food security. Since January 2022, WFP has reached over two million people in Haiti and worked with the Haitian government to provide school meals to thousands of children.
WFP estimates that it will need at least USD 139 million to sustain aid operations for Haiti’s most vulnerable populations for the next twelve months. However, recent funding cuts have forced the agency to suspend hot meal distributions and reduce food rations by half for families in displacement centers. For the first time, WFP has also been unable to pre-position food supplies for climate-related disasters during the Atlantic hurricane season due to a lack of resources.
“Today, more than half of all Haitians don’t have enough to eat,” said Wanja Kaaria, WFP’s director in Haiti. “With our current levels of funding, WFP and partners are struggling to keep starvation at bay for thousands of the most vulnerable – children, mothers, entire families who are running out of options and hope.”
Despite continued access challenges, UNICEF and its partners have been able to make vital progress in addressing the vast scale of needs. So far, the agency has treated over 86,000 children suffering from malnutrition and provided healthcare services to over 117,000 people. Additionally, UNICEF has provided access to safe water for 140,000 people.
UNICEF is urgently appealing for greater international support to expand lifesaving assistance and protection for displaced children—ensuring safe shelter, family tracing and reunification, psychosocial care, and access to essential health, nutrition, education, and sanitation services. However, the organization’s Humanitarian Action for Children appeal for Haiti remains critically underfunded, threatening to halt these efforts.
“The children of Haiti cannot wait,” Russell warned. “Like every child, they deserve a chance to be safe, healthy, and to live in peace. It is up to us to take action for Haiti’s children now.”
IPS UN Bureau Report
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