(Port-au-prince, 08 November 2012): The Government of Haiti and the humanitarian community are calling for urgent help to tackle the worsening humanitarian emergency in Haiti in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. 39 million USD is required to meet the most immediate critical needs to address rising food insecurity and provide shelter, health services and potable water for over a million people. A joint Emergency Appeal issued by the Government of Haiti (GoH) and the humanitarian community outlines these most urgent needs and specifies the assistance required for the coming months to respond to the crisis.

“The impact of Hurricane Sandy in Haiti is extremely severe and heightens the already fragile situation in the country as a result of recurrent natural disasters”, said the Prime Minister of Haiti, M. Laurent Lamothe who had already renewed an appeal on November 1for international emergency aid to help the country deal with the aftermath of Hurricane sandy.

Sandy hit Haiti on 23 October and, after three consecutive days of heavy rains, left 54 dead, and thousands of people homeless and without access basic social services including health care, potable water and schools. According to government statistics the agricultural sector alone lost a third of the annual production, which had already been affected by drought earlier in the year and a tropical storm in August. New cholera outbreaks are already reported. The Martelly-Lamothe Administration has declared a month-long state of national emergency.

One and a half million people, especially 2 percent of under-five children, in the most insecure households now face severe food insecurity and the risk of heightened malnutrition in the coming months. In addition, Hurricane Sandy left 33,760 houses destroyed or damaged. Some 3,000 people cannot return home and do not have access to alternative shelter solutions. A further 5,298 displaced persons in camps were also left homeless. 50 schools were destroyed and 100 damaged, leaving 20,000 students out of school. 61 cholera treatment centers were destroyed by Sandy and TS Isaac. “The lives of over a million people are at risk if no actions are taken swiftly” added Prime Minister Lamothe.
The Government of Haiti estimates the total loss in the agricultural sector at US $104 million - 90,356 hectares of crops (maize, sorghum, peas, beans, rice, groundnuts, vegetables, etc.) were damaged and 64,000 heads of cattle killed.

“This is a major blow to Haiti’s reconstruction effort, while life for the most vulnerable Haitians has become even more precarious,” stressed Mr. Fisher, Humanitarian Coordinator for Haiti. “In the meantime, international partners’ ability to respond has been weakened by dwindling donor financing. Urgent support to meet both immediate humanitarian needs and recovery efforts is urgently required,” he added.

In the coming days, the Government of Haiti and its international partners will meet to discuss further interventions required beyond the critical needs identified in the appeal, for example repair and replacement of physical infrastructure and medium term solutions to housing, rural livelihoods and household food insecurity.

Pour plus d’informations, veuillez contacter:
George Ngwa Anuongong, Chef, Section communication (OCHA), Tél. (509) 3702 5192, E-mail: ngwaanuongong@un.org
Gary Bodeau, Conseiller en communication (Bureau du Premier ministre), Tél. 4411111,
E-mail :garybodeau@hotmail.com