International School Meals Day: Violence, Civil Unrest in Haiti Force School Closures, Halt Some Feeding Programs

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (March 14, 2024) – For students at Our Lady of Victory School located in Balan in northern Haiti, the Food For The Poor School Feeding Program has been a blessing, serving as a lifeline for students whose families are struggling and barely able to get by.

The children at Our Lady of Victory School also are fortunate that their school has not yet been significantly impacted by the ongoing crisis in Haiti. Schools in the western department of the Caribbean nation have closed temporarily due to gang violence and civil unrest, worsening an already dire hunger crisis as people struggle to remain safe.

“It’s a very difficult time for Haiti,” FFTP President/CEO Ed Raine said. “With the current climate of violence and political uncertainty, children and their families are at even greater risk of severe food insecurity and malnutrition.”

Haiti has been wracked with multiple crises for nearly three years, starting with the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021, followed by a 7.2-magnitude earthquake and Tropical Storm Grace in August 2021, major civil unrest, soaring inflation, and a resurgence of cholera in the fall of 2022.

Security services are overwhelmed by hundreds of gangs whose members number in the range of 20,000. Almost half the population of 11 million are in critical levels of food insecurity and more than 360,000 are homeless after fleeing their homes to escape gang violence.

Now, during the worst violence and instability in decades, Haiti remains under a state of emergency and a nighttime curfew after armed gangs attacked the Caribbean country’s two largest prisons on March 2 and freed over 4,000 inmates.

For students in Haiti, the crisis casts a shadow over the recognition of International School Meals Day, which is acknowledged this year on March 14. Celebrated annually on the second Thursday of March, International School Meals Day emphasizes the connection between healthy eating, education, and better learning.

To date, FFTP has supported 29 school feeding projects in Latin America and the Caribbean, including 24 that are completed and five that are still in progress, providing meals for more than 9,100 beneficiaries. In addition, FFTP-Haiti currently supports 820 school feeding programs that provide meals for 267,000 students.

The school feeding program at Our Lady of Victory School responds to a tremendous need for families barely able to get by. Situated in the secluded Balan community, the school serves approximately 6,000 residents in the Morne Rouge section of Haiti’s Plaine-du-Nord commune. Residents earn a meager income from agriculture and fishing, with limited access to drinking water, electricity, and proper sanitation.

Through the generosity of its donors, FFTP has provided supplementary food items to feed 400 students at Our Lady of Victory School, as well as 15 teachers, administrators, and directors during the current academic year.    

FFTP’s support is “a necessity for the children,” School Director Nickenson Cherubin said. “The students are very grateful and appreciate that FFTP selected Our Lady of Victory School to benefit from the feeding program during the 2023-24 year.”

While many students in Haiti are unable to attend school, their counterparts in other countries where FFTP operates school feeding programs are receiving nutritious lunches in safe environments.

A school feeding program at Enterprise Primary School in Durban Backlands, Guyana, aims to alleviate hunger, improve attendance, and enhance the academic performance of 75 students.

Approximately one-third of Guyana’s population of more than 791,000 people live below the poverty line, with its indigenous people disproportionately affected. Access to nutritious meals is a challenge, particularly for families without a stable income and living in poverty.

The school feeding program at Enterprise Primary School serves as a safety net for vulnerable children. The project launched in April 2023 and has served approximately 15,375 meals, with positive results. Students receive a nutritious lunch each day, parents are grateful for the financial relief the program provides, staff members report a decrease in truancy, and students are better able to concentrate in class.

“The program has been very beneficial to our children,” said Emily Lynch-Duff, headmistress of Enterprise Primary School. “They have started coming to school more often. They look forward to this program.”

Meanwhile in Haiti, many children are unable to attend school amid the ongoing chaos. As the situation continues to unfold, FFTP stands ready to resume its full scale of operations in the beleaguered nation once the crisis ends.  

“We are continuously monitoring the situation and staying in close contact with our team in Haiti and our in-country partners,” Raine said. “Because of our longstanding involvement in Haiti, we are well-positioned to resume our work, with a renewed focus on combating food insecurity, helping children displaced by gang violence, and working toward long-term recovery.”  

Food For The Poor, one of the largest international relief and development organizations in the nation, does much more than feed millions of hungry children and families living in poverty primarily in 17 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, water, medicine, educational materials, homes, support for vulnerable children, care for the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance. For more information, please visit foodforthepoor.org.

Ernestine Williams

Communications
305-321-7342
[email protected]