UNITED NATIONS – The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says armed violence and escalating insecurity continue to severely impact the education system in several departments of Haiti, particularly in the Centre, Ouest, Artibonite and Nord departments.
A school child being guided by her parent in the violent plague Port au Prince (File Photo)“As of late April, more than 1,600 schools have been forced to close, disrupting access to learning for more than 243,000 children – that’s according to our partners working to support education in Haiti,” said Farhan Haq, the Deputy Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres. .
He said this is a 60 per cent increase in school closures in just four months, up from 960 schools closed at the start of the year. Most closures are concentrated in the Ouest and Centre departments, where insecurity, displacement, and the use of schools by gangs and displaced people have intensified.
“More than 80 schools are serving as collective shelters for internally displaced people, while 166 schools have been relocated, often under precarious conditions: Learning spaces often lack basic infrastructure, water, sanitation and essential supplies,” Haq told reporters.
The Un said that children in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country continue to face serious protection risks, including exploitation, sexual abuse and recruitment by gangs.
“When students see their education interrupted, they become even more vulnerable to these threats. Teachers have been displaced, and many communities face insecurity and damaged roads, making access to functioning schools unsafe,” Haq said.
Criminal gangs have been seeking to overthrow the government and despite the presence of a multi-national security force led by Kenya, the gangs continue to control the majority of the capital, Port au Prince and outlying areas.
Haq said that this year’s Humanitarian Response Plan for Haiti calls for more than US$61 million to support education in the country.
“Yet despite surging needs, including a sharp increase in school closures and the use of schools as shelters, as we just mentioned, the education response has received less than $6 million to date.
“Additional support is urgently needed to sustain learning for Haiti’s most vulnerable children and prevent a generational education crisis in the country,” Haq said, adding that immediate priorities include temporary learning spaces, school kits for at least 100,000 children, mental health and psychosocial support for students and teachers, improved access to water and sanitation, and measures to secure school environments.
He said that the OCHA continues to coordinate closely with partners working on education in Haiti – as well as national authorities – to ensure that children’s right to learning is preserved, even in crisis.
