• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Haiti Still 'Shamefully Overlooked and Woefully Underfunded', Secretary-General Warns Security Council, Urging Donors to Act Now Before Life-Saving Operations Stop

Press Release
Secretary-General / Statements and Messages

SG/SM/22778
28 August 2025

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres' remarks to the Security Council briefing on the humanitarian and child protection situation in Haiti, in New York today:

I thank Panama for convening this briefing on the humanitarian and child protection situation in Haiti.

The people of Haiti are in a perfect storm of suffering. State authority is crumbling as gang violence engulfs Port-au-Prince and spreads beyond — paralysing daily life and forcing families to flee. Civilians are under siege with appalling reports of rape and sexual violence. Hospitals and schools are under repeated attack. The rule of law has collapsed.

The humanitarian toll is staggering: 1.3 million people — half of them children — have fled their homes. Six million people need humanitarian assistance. Haiti is now among the five global hunger hotspots of "highest concern". Aid workers, especially local responders, are being targeted — facing threats of violence, extortion and kidnapping.

Let me be clear: All parties must respect international humanitarian law. Humanitarian personnel, assets and facilities must be protected. Despite the danger, humanitarians remain on the ground — delivering food, water, medicine, and shelter. In the first quarter of this year alone, they reached 1.3 million people.

Yet, Haiti remains shamefully overlooked and woefully underfunded. For 2025, we require $908 million to support 3.9 million people. But less than 10 per cent has been received, making Haiti the least funded humanitarian appeal in the world. As a result, over 1.7 million people risk receiving no assistance at all. This is not a funding gap. It is a life-and-death emergency. I urge all donors to act before lifesaving operations grind to a halt. Children are bearing the brunt of this crisis.

In my annual report on children and armed conflict, Haiti ranked among the top five countries for grave violations against children in 2024. Children are being abducted and killed, recruited and used, and subjected to horrific sexual violence — including gang rape. These are crimes that scar bodies, minds, and futures.

The United Nations verified 2,269 grave violations against 1,373 children last year — a nearly fivefold increase from the year before. This includes 213 children killed, 138 maimed, and 302 children recruited and used. We also verified 566 cases of sexual violence against minors — including 160 cases of gang rape, underscoring how such crimes are used as a weapon of terror and control.

Basic services have collapsed. Mass displacement has left children without education, healthcare, or safety. As of April, gang violence had interrupted the schooling of 243,000 students. We verified 154 abductions, 154 attacks on schools and hospitals, and 728 incidents of denial of humanitarian access.

The 2024 Handover Protocol between the United Nations and the Government of Haiti is an important step towards protecting children detained for alleged association with armed groups. But implementation remains uneven.

Conditions at CERMICOL — the Reintegration Center for Minors in Conflict with the Law — are deeply troubling. I am also alarmed by the rise of so-called community self-defence groups, some aligned with police forces, implicated in grave violations, including summary executions of children.

I urge all authorities to implement the Handover Protocol nationwide — end the detention of children for alleged association with armed groups; ensure access to specialized services, including for survivors of sexual violence; and guarantee accountability for all perpetrators.

I call on this Council to prioritize the protection of children. The political situation remains fragile. But there are emerging signals of hope. I am encouraged by growing cooperation between the President of the Transitional Presidential Council, Laurent Saint-Cyr, and the Prime Minister, Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, who are both leading consultations to move the political process forward.

We are also seeing closer coordination between the Prime Minister's Task Force, the Haitian National Police, and the Multinational Security Support mission, improving operations on the ground.

These fragile gains must be protected and expanded. That requires decisive and coordinated international security support to strengthen national efforts, protect the population and create the conditions for a return to the rule of law and credible, inclusive elections.

I welcome efforts by members of this Council to advance my 24 February proposal to strengthen the Multinational Security Support mission through UN logistical and operational support.

I urge the Council to act without delay and authorize an international force, supported by the United Nations through logistical and operational backing, and predictable financing.

Voluntary contributions to the MSS Trust Fund remain essential, but assessed support would ensure impact and sustainability. Security measures must go hand-in-hand with increased pressure on those fuelling the violence. This includes an effective arms embargo, as well as a targeted expansion of sanctions against gang leaders, financiers, arms traffickers, and others connected to them.

These steps are vital to cut off the weapons and money that sustain chaos. Enforcement — at ports, borders, and online — must be strengthened, in close coordination with regional partners. My Special Representative, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, is in Port-au-Prince, working with national and international partners to build consensus at this pivotal moment.

The United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) will continue to support an inclusive political process and work closely with the Haitian National Police, the MSS, and donors to ensure coherent, coordinated assistance.

I urge all national stakeholders to seize this moment and sustain this spirit of cooperation. With unity inside the country, and resolve from this Council, the Haitian people can emerge from the perfect storm, begin to turn hardship into hope, and reclaim their future.

I reaffirm my unwavering solidarity and the determination of the United Nations to stand side by side with the people of Haiti for peace, dignity, and security.