PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (CMC) — The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has called for access without hindrance for humanitarian agencies and the free movement of food in order to prevent an already disastrous food insecurity from becoming catastrophic in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (Caricom) country of Haiti.

The WFP said it continues to provide emergency food assistance in Haiti alongside programmes that help address the root causes of hunger.

However, the recent upsurge in violence has prevented the UN organisation from helping more than 370,000 Haitians among those most affected by food insecurity since the beginning of February. Currently, 44 per cent of Haitians face acute food insecurity and struggle to feed their families.

“The recent surge in violence has blocked transport routes, restricted travel, and closed schools, forcing WFP to temporarily suspend many activities across the country. We cannot afford to lose ground when 1.4 million Haitians face emergency levels of hunger.

We risk seeing the most vulnerable people fall into famine-like conditions if we cannot provide effective aid,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP country director in Haiti.

The WFP said children are most affected by the latest wave of violence and unrest. It said school closures in recent weeks have deprived nearly 300,000 schoolchildren of the daily hot meals provided by the WFP and its partners in school canteens, which constitute, for many, the only full meal of the day.

In Port-au-Prince, WFP said it was also unable to deliver rations to 56,000 people in the poor neighbourhood of Cité Soleil, nor food to central kitchens providing meals to recently displaced people.

In collaboration with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, the WFP said it continues to disburse payments to vulnerable households in Grand’Anse department through its social safety net programme, which enables digital transfers using mobile phones.

The WFP said it aims to reach 2.4 million people in 2024 with emergency assistance including cash and in-kind food rations, security permitting.