The US and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has announced what is collectively US$170mn in new aid for Haiti as the country continues to struggle with gang warfare and unrest.
In a release, the IDB said that its management has approved US$110mn from its Grant Facility to improve food security, health, and the inclusion of vulnerable children and youth in Haiti.
This funding will provide unconditional cash transfers to 165,000 people and conditional transfers for community projects, benefiting around 7,400 workers and their families – approximately 37,000 individuals. However, this is subject to their participation in small works for the creation, restoration, and maintenance of community assets selected by the communities.
A portion of the funds will go towards improving healthcare access and use of integrated essential healthcare services, focusing on mother and child health and nutrition, including facility-based delivery and the management of obstetric complications.
HaitiLibre reported that the project will also address family planning and care for gender-based violence survivors and provide community-based and primary level services to control and prevent HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria, as well as the detection and care of patients with chronic conditions.
The IBD funds will repair hospitals, supply essential health items such as vaccines, medicines, equipment, and parts, and offer subsidies to remove economic barriers like transportation costs and other out-of-pocket expenses, benefiting an estimated 1.5mn Haitians.
The project will also support youth and children through educational programmes including the Reach Up and Learn curriculum and provision of learning materials for children six months to three years in the country’s Southeastern department.
It will also fund entrepreneurship hubs for around 750 entrepreneurs, including outreach, selection, training, and support activities for youth entrepreneurs and gender-inclusive initiatives for women, impacting about 20,000 vulnerable youths.
In addition to the IDB grant, Haiti will also benefit from US$60mn in additional aid announced by US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield during her recent visit to the country.
“This funding will help USAID partners fill critical gaps in nutrition, food security and shelter,” said Thomas-Greenfield at a press conference in Haiti, adding that the aid would also help improve water and sanitation services and help affected communities buy essential commodities.
The latest package will also have a significant security element for the national police as part of an international effort to combat gang violence.
According to VOA News, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield revealed that the Pentagon would provide “a significant number” of mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles to the Kenya-led multinational security support force (MSS), to strengthen its capacity.
She noted that the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs also planned to send additional armoured vehicles for the mission, to add to the 16 armoured personnel carriers the US has already delivered as part of an earlier US$200mn package.
“This enhanced vehicle package will further assist the MSS in combating gang violence in Port-au-Prince… I hope that this funding and support serves as a call to action for members of the international community to join suit,” said Thomas-Greenfield.
With 80% of Port-au-Prince under gang control and widespread displacement of Haitians, she acknowledged that the MSS faces considerable hurdles, but maintained that “this mission has opened a door to progress, where there wasn’t one before,” urging Haiti’s government to establish a Provisional Electoral Council for future elections.
“We had a very productive discussion about the situation here in Haiti, how we can continue to work together to improve both security, but more importantly, to work on development so that the Haitian people can see the benefits and receive the dividends from this effort to provide security here to them,” said the Ambassador after meeting with interim Prime Minister Garry Conille and members of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT).
CARICOM Member States, who helped broker the resignation of former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, also said that they were hopeful about the future of Haiti after receiving a report from members of the CPT at the 47th Ordinary Meeting of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of CARICOM held earlier this week in Grenada.
“Life is beginning to resume on the streets of the capital and in the rest of the country. In the North and South, approximately 80,000 students in the ninth fundamental year successfully passed their official examinations last week,” said CPT Chairman Edgard Leblanc Jr. at the meeting.
He said that the CPT and the Government are putting in place the necessary structures to allow, at the institutional level, to move towards the elections scheduled for the end of 2025.
The US and other world powers have committed over US$300mn to support the MSS which has already seen deployment of some 400 police officers from Kenya.
Source: Caribbean Insight