UNITED NATIONS (CMC) — The United Nations (UN) has launched a US$74 million fund to aid Cuba in the wake of the destruction caused by Hurricane Melisa.

The UN said that an estimated 2.2 million Cubans remain in dire need of assistance across the eastern provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Holguin, and Guantanamo following the passage of the Category Five storm.

A formal Plan of Action was announced by the UN system in Cuba in support of the government-driven national response “to get the country back on its feet”.

UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said that the plan focuses on health, water and sanitation, shelter, education, and early recovery. He said the plan also pays special attention to the needs of women, children and other vulnerable groups.

The UN said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), its aid coordination office, had released US$4 million in emergency funding ahead of the storm, while UN agencies have unlocked an additional US$7 million, leaving a funding gap of about US$64 million to meet urgent needs.

The UN said that, in crisis-wracked Haiti, around 16,000 people have been displaced in total, with 43 reported dead, dozens injured, and 13 still missing.

In Petit-Goâve, Haiti alone, the UN said 25 people have lost their lives — the highest number of casualties recorded in the country from the hurricane.

On Wednesday, the UN said a team from OCHA, along with representatives from the UN’s child and emergency food agencies, were on-site to coordinate with local authorities and partners to strengthen response efforts.

The UN said its World Food Programme (WFP) needs around US$18 million to assist nearly 190,000 people in Haiti.

Additionally, WFP reported that 40 per cent of households in the hardest-hit communes in Haiti now have a poor food consumption score, representing a 20 per cent increase since the disaster.

OCHA said the UN said it and its humanitarian partners are “stepping up aid response” in the Grand Sud region, the area in Haiti most severely impacted by Hurricane Melissa.

Meantime, the Canadian Government said that Prime Minister Mark Carney held talks on Wednesday with Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who is also the chair of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) grouping.

“Prime Minister Carney expressed Canada’s deepest sympathies to the people of Jamaica following the destruction caused by Hurricane Melissa,” said a Canadian government statement.

“Prime Minister Carney affirmed Canada’s commitment to support Jamaica in its recovery, including through recent emergency food, water and health assistance, alongside humanitarian partners.”

The statement said Carney also highlighted the activation of the Canadian Armed Forces’ operational support hub in Jamaica “to help enable the delivery of regional disaster relief efforts”.