At the end of last week, United Nations agencies confirmed a 53 percent increase in murders and injuries related to gang violence, recording 2,500 events from January to March 2024. Most of the cases were documented in the capital, although the Artibonite department was also heavily affected.
According to the UN, the impact of violence on children’s rights is extremely alarming, as is the expansion of sexual violence within the gangs.
As part of the limited support, the United Nations Children’s Fund deploys mobile clinics to provide consultations, medical treatment and other health care to children and families in displacement sites. However, agencies warn that social services are on the verge of collapse as violence in the capital goes on the rise and supplies run alarmingly low.
The World Food Program said on Friday that the availability of basic products in the capital – such as oil, rice, and wheat flour –runs increasingly low mainly due to supply difficulties and increased demand, as households anticipate the worsening of the security crisis.
The cost of a food hamper in Port-au-Prince has increased more than 20 percent since the beginning of the year.
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