UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, briefing reporters in New York on Tuesday, said Secretary-General Guterres wants to see funding and support for the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti secured as soon as possible.
The Security Council has approved this multinational mission with the aim of restoring law and order in crisis-torn Haiti.
Kenya and Haiti signed an agreement just days ago that will see a contingent of 1,000 Kenyan officers deployed for a security support mission in the country.
However it is unclear whether Kenya’s High Court will allow the mission to go ahead, amid constitutional challenges.
Last week, Benin confirmed it would provide security personnel to the support mission. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric pointed out that it is not a UN peacekeeping force.
He said this support mission will help address security challenges for the public in Haiti and prevent the country from descending into further chaos.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry was in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, to sign the agreement but has not yet returned to Haiti, where a 72-hour state of emergency and curfew are currently in place.
Armed groups control 80 percent of Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, and have also tried to take control of the main airport in an attempt to oust the current government and prevent Prime Minister Henry from returning to the country.
death and displacement
UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance Affairs (OCHAAccording to the WHO, fresh violence and unrest in the capital have forced 15,000 people to flee their homes, many of whom have already been displaced.
The UN spokesperson said that despite security concerns, humanitarian aid organizations have started providing food, hygiene and health related materials to the newly displaced people. Apart from this, mattresses, blankets, sheets and lamps are being arranged.
World Food Programme ,WFP) and partner organizations have so far provided over 5,500 food packages to 3,000 people at new displaced shelters.
At the same time, the International Organization for Migration has distributed emergency shelter relief materials to more than 300 families.
The humanitarian community in Haiti calls on all parties to immediately cease violence to allow aid to reach populations in need.
Nearly half the country’s population, i.e. 55 lakh people, are said to be in need of humanitarian assistance.
Lack of aid funds
Only 2.5 percent of the $674 million appealed this year for humanitarian aid efforts in Haiti has been raised.
A UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Haiti has been called for Wednesday, which is likely to be addressed by UN mission head Maria Isabel Salvador.
UN Secretary General He also urged all political parties to take necessary steps to advance the political process in the country and restore democratic institutions through elections.