PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The United Nations (UN) children’s agency said one of its containers carrying essential supplies for the survival of newborn babies and their mothers was looted by gangs at Haiti’s main port in the capital on Saturday.

United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) said the container with items for maternal, neonatal, and child survival –including resuscitators and related equipment – as well as critical supplies for early childhood development and education, and water equipment, was one of seven of its containers looted in the early morning.

UNICEF Representative in Haiti, Bruno Maes, said the theft of the supplies occurred “at a critical moment when children need them the most”.

“Depriving children of vital health supplies amidst a collapsing healthcare system is a violation of their rights,” he said. “Looting of supplies that are essential for life-saving support for children must end immediately and humanitarian access must remain safe,” Maes said.

Armed groups breached the city’s main port a week ago, severing one of the capital’s last remaining lifelines for food and supplies as the country edges closer to collapse. Currently, over 260 humanitarian-owned containers are controlled by armed groups at the port.

Since January, the deteriorating security situation in Haiti has continued to worsen the humanitarian crisis, with UNICEF expressing grave concerns over the impact of violence on children’s access to an already crumbling healthcare system that is supported by essential UNICEF supplies. Three out of four women and children do not have access to basic public health and nutrition interventions in the Metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince.

In Port-au-Prince, hospitals have been vandalised and forced to close due to safety concerns. There are only two functional surgical operating facilities available, posing significant challenges for providing surgical care to the population, including those wounded in the crossfire.

“The closure of health facilities due to security concerns in Haiti represents a dire situation for children where every closed health centre means lives at risk and essential medical care denied,” said Maes. “Failure to stop the violence and reopen critical logistics routes will significantly exacerbate the healthcare crisis. We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe, and there is little time left to reverse it.”

Across the country, six out of 10 hospitals are not functional, facing challenges such as electricity, fuel, and medical supply shortages, which has a severe impact on children who need emergency medical attention, especially in Port-au-Prince. A critical shortage of blood products is hindering surgeries, including those for individuals wounded in the crossfire.

In 2024, UNICEF’s plan for Haiti is to continue scaling up the humanitarian response by increasing access to basic services and helping to keep those services going. UNICEF aims to reach at least 650,000 children and women accessing primary healthcare services.

“Flexible funding will help us protect more children and communities in need today and go towards building more resilient systems to protect children in the future. We remain committed to delivering aid despite the ever-changing realities on the ground, even in hard-to-reach and the most challenging areas,” Maes concluded.