More than 300,000 children displaced by violence, UNICEF says

In Haiti, gang violence has displaced more than 300,000 children, a figure that has increased by 60% since March, or the equivalent of one “child every minute,” UNICEF warned on Monday, July 1, 2024.

Children are the first victims of these mass displacements. According to UNICEF, they represent more than half of the 600,000 people forced to leave their homes due to the pervasive violence, particularly in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital.

“Children in Haiti continue to face a multitude of dangers, including horrific violence and critical levels of displacement,” said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director. “Children are bearing the brunt of this humanitarian crisis unfolding before our eyes. Displaced children are in desperate need of a safe and protective environment, as well as increased support and funding from the international community,” she continued.

Doubly victims of violence, children and adolescents are not only forced to flee often without their families, to drop out of school and to live in precarious conditions, but they are also exposed to sexual assault, exploitation and abuse.

UNICEF stresses that more and more children are joining armed groups, which are active in the country where 90% of the population lives in poverty and where three million children require humanitarian aid.

“The needs in Haiti continue to grow, as do the dangers facing children. Everyone has a role to play in ending this situation and getting children back to school, to be safe and to have access to basic services. Children must not pay with their lives and their futures for a crisis created by adults,” concluded Catherine Russell.

Haiti has been mired in an economic, political and security crisis for years, exacerbated by gang violence that controls 80% of the capital. Last week, the first contingent of Kenyan police arrived in Port-au-Prince as part of an international mission aimed at restoring security in the country.

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