Puerto Princip.- The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) warned that social protests, gang violence and the resurgence of cholera “may keep” more than 2.4 million children out of classrooms in Haitialthough the school year began on October 3.
Most schools have not reopened and will remain closed if the violence does not subside, the agency said in a document released this Saturday in the Haitian capital.
“Education is a child’s path to a better future. It is imperative that schools remain open and that children can attend them without fear,” said Bruno Maes, UNICEF representative in Haiti.
The diplomat affirmed that the continuous closures of schools are fueling a “perverse spiral”, since a child who does not go to school is a child who is “one step closer to being forcibly recruited by armed groups and increasing the violence that keeps schools closed.”
The resurgence of cholera may also have an impact on children’s right to learn.
Unicef highlighted that since the first report of cholera on October 2, 152 people are suspected of suffering from the disease, 5 deaths and 12 positive cases have been confirmed. In addition, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has reported the death of 2 children due to the disease.
Assessments carried out by the Haitian Ministry of Education and Unicef in June show that more than 200 schools were partially or totally closed due to the violence in Port-au-Prince, and almost one in four schools was occupied by armed groups.
In the last three weeks, another 27 educational centers have been attacked and looted by armed groups, depriving children of their right to education, Unicef added.
The UN agency stated that in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince, armed groups are occupying school facilities, further reducing access to education for children, adolescents and young people in Haiti.
“More than 6,000 households, some 20,000 people, including some 8,200 children, have been forced to flee urban areas for their safety. Families live with relatives and host families, and others have moved to provincial cities,” the office said.
Unicef also recalled that on October 6 “large groups of people” entered its warehouses in Les Cayes, in southern Haiti, where they looted medical and nutritional supplies, water supply repair equipment and school supplies, who were ready to respond to the humanitarian needs of 320,000 children.
By the end of 2021, UNICEF has asked the international community for a $97 million fund to provide humanitarian aid to 950,000 people in Haiti, including 520,000 children. To date, the agency revealed that it has only received a third of those funds.
