Humanity & Inclusion transported more than 16 tons of equipment from its emergency response depot in Dubai to Port-au-Prince to help communities affected by the Aug. 14 earthquake.

Humanity & Inclusion is determined to put inclusion and protection at the forefront of its emergency response to ensure that no one is left behind. 

Women, children, aging people and people with disabilities are at even greater risk of harm following the recent Haiti earthquake.

Deliver emergency aid to Haiti

Members of Humanity & Inclusion’s emergency team head north from Les Cayes to assess needs in Grand’Anse following the earthquake.

Humanity & Inclusion’s emergency area manager, a logistics specialist and an expert in debris clearance are visiting Jeremie, Corail and Pestel to assess the situation and determine the next steps of their response. The earthquake dramatically affected these areas, leaving many injured and without shelter, food or clean water. 

In the aftermath of the recent Haitian earthquake, Humanity & Inclusion delivers humanitarian aid by sea to support people affected by the disaster.

On Monday morning, Humanity & Inclusion received a maritime shipment of mobility aids in Les Cayes, where its emergency team has been responding since the recent earthquake caused more than 2,200 deaths and over 12,000 injuries throughout southwest Haiti.

Deliver emergency aid to Haiti

Food security at risk

Today, more than one out of two Central Africans is food insecure according to the World Food Programme (July 2021). In addition, more than one in four people are either refugees or internally displaced, the number of displaced people in CAR has reached 1,417,542 (UNHCR, 30/06/2021), the highest number since 2014. In addition to the displacements caused by insecurity, flood victims represent 30% of the displacements between May and June 2021.

"These recurrent displacements and insecurity are seriously impacting agricultural production, which is already weakened by climate disruption, crop diseases and difficulties in accessing inputs and farming tools. This not only destabilizes the country's food security but also impacts the livelihoods of rural households that depend heavily on subsistence farming for their survival" said Mathilde Lambert, Country Director of Action Against Hunger-CAR.

Alarming health challenges

Repeated attacks on patients, staff, medical assets and infrastructure, as well as insecurity, have disrupted access to health care. The situation is worrying because CAR's health indicators continue to be particularly alarming. The country has the worst infant mortality rate in the world (WB, 2019) and one of the worst maternal mortality rates in the world (WB, 2017).

"The impact of the conflict and humanitarian crisis in the Central African Republic on the mental health of affected populations is often underestimated. On the ground, we observe symptoms of depression, anxiety or psychosis," says Dr. Christian Mulamba, Country Director at International Medical Corps. Plagued by a measles epidemic since 2020, the country has also experienced major malaria epidemics, which remains the leading cause of morbidity. As a result, CAR population has a life expectancy of 53 years, one of the lowest in the world.

Education in crisis

After a year 2020 disrupted by the COVID-19 preventive health restrictions, the conflict has disrupted the functioning of an already precarious education system: student absenteeism, school closures due to insecurity, occupation of schools by displaced populations or by armed actors. This situation permanently compromises the future of Central African youth and particularly that of internally displaced children and that of girls living in the conflict areas.

Sexual violence on the rise

While men account for the majority of the conflict's dead and wounded, women, girls, boys, and people living with disabilities are greatly affected by difficulties in accessing basic social services (education, sexual and reproductive health care, nutrition, etc.) and by protection problems. Reported sexual violence is on the rise in the country and disproportionately affects women and girls.

To date, the humanitarian response plan in CAR is only half funded. International NGOs are calling for the mobilization of Central African authorities and donors to ensure the humanitarian response and the protection of civilians.

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Since the week of December 14, 2020, armed clashes have broken out in the Central African Republic and continue to this day. Civilians, humanitarian workers, and medical staff have not been spared from the wave of violence that has since taken place in the country. The number of incidents affecting humanitarians between January and June 2021 has increased by 39% compared to the same period last year. Despite the insecurity, humanitarians provided assistance to 25% of the population during the first quarter of 2021.

Humanity & Inclusion in Central African Republic

Humanity & Inclusion has worked in the Central African Republic since 1994, and since 2016, the organization has worked to ensure that the most vulnerable people receive the life-saving, life-enabling aid they need after three years of acute crisis.

Since gaining its independence in 1958, the country has experienced chronic instability as a result of regular military coups and the repeated failure to transition to a democratic system.

Areas of Intervention

• Emergency
• Prevention
• Rehabilitation
• Logistics services

Since the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic in Central African Republic, Humanity & Inclusion's 146-person team has developed inclusive awareness projects on personal protection measures. Through its logistics platform projects, Humanity & Inclusion supports and facilitates the delivery of aid by humanitarian organizations throughout the country.

About Humanity & Inclusion 

Humanity & Inclusion is an independent international aid organization. It has been working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster for close to 40 years. Working alongside people with disabilities and people living in situations of extreme vulnerability, our action and testimony focus on responding to their essential needs, improving their living conditions, and promoting respect for their dignity and basic rights. Since its 1982 founding, Humanity & Inclusion has set up development programs in more than 60 countries and intervenes in numerous emergency situations.  The network of eight national associations (Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States) works constantly to mobilize resources, jointly manage projects and to increase the impact of the organization’s principles and actions. Humanity & Inclusion is one of six founding organizations of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), the co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. The organization has numerous prizes to its name, including the 2011 Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize, the 1996 Nansen Prize, and two 2020 Horizon Prizes for innovation. Humanity & Inclusion acts and campaigns in places where “living in dignity” is no easy task. 

On a recent visit to a hospital in Les Cayes, Humanity & Inclusion’s staff met Oscar, who remains positive despite his home being destroyed and his leg broken in the earthquake.

On August 14, Oscar was just outside his home, walking down the narrow alley between two buildings, when he felt the ground begin to move.

“The walls swayed back and forth and I started to run,” he says. “I knew immediately that it was an earthquake, and that they could collapse at any moment." Before he could escape, the bricks began crashing onto him, cutting his arms and shattering his leg. Despite his broken leg, Oscar continued to run to avoid being buried by the rubble. 

The Humanity & Inclusion emergency response team has begun the training process for physical therapists who will be reinforcing local hospitals and a rehabilitation center in Les Cayes, Haiti.

Our experts are working with seven physical therapists and one physical therapy assistant who have already received all of the appropriate training to respond to routine rehabilitation needs. Most of the specialists have participated in past trainings conducted by Humanity & Inclusion.

Deliver emergency aid to Haiti

After the 2010 earthquake introduced her to the field, Humanity & Inclusion rehabilitation graduate Guetchly-Nise now finds herself treating those affected by the most recent disaster.

This week, Humanity & Inclusion teams in Haiti are training physical therapists and rehabilitation specialists in emergency rehabilitation to reinforce overwhelmed medical centers in Les Cayes. On Wednesday, one of the new recruits, Guetchly-Nise, started her first day responding to those who were injured in the earthquake. 

Just days after an earthquake hit Haiti, Humanity & Inclusion is providing assistance in hospitals in the country’s worst-affected region. A team of physical therapists trained to care for people with earthquake-related injuries will begin work this week.