News

Study: Food Security Situation in Haiti “Looks Bleak”

By: Caribbean Journal Staff - December 10, 2012

Above: small children are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity (WFP Photo/Elio Rujano)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Haiti’s food security situation continues to deteriorate in the wake of a pair of intense storms this year, according to a study by the Igarape Institute, a Rio de Janeiro-based think tank.

The study surveyed a total of 1,355 households, with a response rate of 84.7 percent. The surveys were conducted in the north of the country during a six-day period beginning Nov. 11. Surveys in other regions were conducted during the week following Hurricane Sandy.

Over the next six to twelve months, Haiti’s food security situation “looks bleak,” the study found.

“With roughly three quarters of households surveyed lacking the seeds, cuttings and tubers need to grow food during the coming season, it is likely that the country will be forced to import more expensive food from abroad to meet the needs of the local population.”

Nearly 70 percent of households in Haiti’s Ouest, Nord and Grand’Anse departments experienced moderate or severe hunger as a result of the storms that hit Haiti this fall, as measured by the USDA Food Security Scale.

Further, more than two thirds of surveyed households lost crops from their fields, according to the report. That echoes findings by Haiti’s government that nearly 70 percent of the country’s crops had been destroyed by Isaac and Sandy.

The situation was not as dire for many of those receiving remittances from family or friends abroad, who were 8.1 times less likely to experience hunger after the storm.

Post-disaster water issues are “pervasive,” the report found, with less than 10 percent of surveyed households drinking treated water in the week after the storm. Overflowing latrines, which were reported by 40 percent of households, may have also contaminated homes’ water supplies.

That also mirrors findings by the United Nations, which said that as many as 1.5 million Haitians were at risk of food insecurity in 2013 due to the storms.

Popular Posts w punta cana

A New All-Inclusive W Hotel Is Opening This Year in Punta Cana 

The first-ever all-inclusive W Hotel in the Caribbean is opening this year in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, Caribbean Journal has learned.  The hotel, part of a broad expansion for parent company Marriott International, is on the list of expected 2024 […]


Why Grenada Is a New Caribbean Luxury Hotspot

beach house silversands

From its world-renowned chocolate to its pristine beaches to a region-leading focus on sustainability, Grenada is as fascinating and unique as destination as you’ll find in the Caribbean.  But in the last few years, the lush Eastern Caribberan island has […]


5 Adults-Only Resorts to Visit Right Now in the Caribbean 

galley bay

Sometimes you just want that extra degree of serenity, of privacy, of seclusion. There is a reason, after all, that adults-only resorts are booming in popularity, particularly in the Caribbean: travelers want to know that when they arrive, they know […]


Related Posts haiti spirit airlines cap-haitien

Spirit Relaunches Flights to Cap-Haitien, Haiti

Spirit Airlines has relaunched its flights from Fort Lauderdale to Cap-Haitien on the northern coast of Haiti.  The low-cost carrier resumed the service between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Cap-Haitien International Airport on Dec. 3.  The service is the only […]


Eastern Airlines Is Launching Flights to the Dominican Republic

dominican republic eastern airlines

The revived Eastern Airlines is back in the Caribbean.  The new iteration of the once-legendary carrier is set to launch expanded Caribbean flights in December with service to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.  Eastern Airlines will be launching twice-weekly flights from […]


From The Bahamas to Jamaica, The Talking Heads’ Caribbean Love Story

bahamas talking heads jamaica

Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz’s new book, Remain in Love, is a billet-doux to his bandmate and wife of more than 40 years, bassist Tina Weymouth, as well as documenting the couple’s musical journey together — first, as part of […]


SUBSCRIBE!

Sign up for Caribbean Journal's free newsletter for a daily dose of beaches, hotels, rum and the best Caribbean travel information on the net.


No. Thank You