Haiti has one of the highest levels of food insecurity in the world. 4.4 million Haitians, nearly half the population need immediate food assistance, and among these, 1.2 million suffer from severe hunger (UN World Food Programme, 2021). Moreover, over 1 million people are in a situation classified as emergency (ibid). The impact of food insecurity is most severely impacted on children as according to WFP, 22% of children in the country are chronically malnourished, 10% are underweight and 66% of under-5s suffer from anemia (ibid).
Among other driving factors, regular socio-political instability, a deteriorating economy, decades of underinvestment in agricultural development, poor natural resource management, and acute deforestation have led to increased food security concerns. Not only that, but climate change has increased Haiti’s vulnerability to earthquakes, storms, hurricanes and droughts that have exacerbated over the last two decades resulted in aggravating environmental degradation and significant crop losses. The 2021 Climate Risk Index has marked Haiti as the third among the countries most affected by extreme weather events from 2000 to 2019 (Eckstein et al., 2021). Haiti can be regarded as the case, where the acute impact of climate change is most vividly visible. More than 96% of the population are exposed to natural hazards (The World Bank in Haiti, 2021). Hurricane Matthew, which hit the country in 2016, caused losses and damages estimated at 32% of 2015 GDP, while the 2010 earthquake, that killed about 250,000 people, decimated 120% of the country GDP (ibid). According to the 2020 Human Development Index, Haiti ranks 170th out of 189 countries (UNDP Human Development Report, 2020).
Located in the Caribbean sea, between Cuba and Puerto Rico, Haiti is bordered to the east by the Dominical Republic. Haiti occupies the mountainous portion of the island of Hispaniola. Five mountain ranges dominate Haiti’s landscape and divide the country into three regions : northern, central, and southern (Ferguson et al., 2021). Haiti gained independence from France on January 1, 1804 and was the first modern state governed by people of African descent and the second nation in the Western Hemisphere to achieve independence (Ferrer, 2012). However, over the centuries, Haiti has experienced multiple political, economic, social difficulties and natural disasters that significantly diminished the development of the country. Haiti’s limited resource base has been depleted, first through intensive colonial exploitation and later through unplanned development and corruption (Pierre, 2020). Haiti’s vulnerability to natural disasters is also caused due to its gang-related violence, civil unrest, land-use practices, low per capita income, high population density, and limited infrastructure and services (Schuberth, 2015).
Since 2018, Haiti has faced mass civil unrest caused by the increased cost of petrol products, high cost of life and corruption (Taft-Morales, 2019). The demonstrations lasted almost eight weeks and led to a complete lockdown of the country. Not only socio-economic activities but humanitarian assistance programs were also temporarily paused (BBC, 2019). General insecurity in the country opened the door to kidnapping and urban violence.
The recent 7.2 magnitude earthquake that hit Haiti in August 2021, further increased vulnerability of the country and resulted in widespread destruction. The death toll has risen to at least 1,419, with at least 6,000 being injured and many more are still missing (World Vision, 2010). People suffer from limited access to basic services, many hospitals, schools and bridges have been destroyed (UNICEF, 2021). Unfortunately, it was not the first time Haiti experienced drastic earthquake. Back in 2010, approximately 3 million people have been affected by the earthquake. In 2016, the Hurricane Matthew affected 90% of the communities caused limited access to drinkable water, the damage of crops and food resources (Kianersi et al 2021). All the above-mentioned developments have exposed the country to the greatest humanitarian need in its history.
Consequently, the current challenge of food insecurity in Haiti has its long and multiple underlying causes. The crisis is certainly combination of natural, economic, and socio-political factors. Haitians are direct subjects to violation of the right to food. The right to food is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, recognized as the right of all persons to “adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food” (Universal Declaration of Human Rights). The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which is part of the International Bill of Human Rights, recognizes the right to adequate food as an essential part of the right to an adequate standard of living. It also explicitly recognizes “the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger” (UNHR, The Right to Adequate Food). Other international conventions such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) also recognize the right to food. Generally, food security can be defined in six dimensions that are interrelated: physical availability of food, economic and physical access to food, affordability of the food supply, availability of adequate and safe food, the utilization or the ability of the body to make use of the nutrients and the stability of the dimensions. In summary, these dimensions are classified as: access, availability, adequacy, safety, affordability and stability.
Haiti ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) on October 8, 2013. ICESCR recognizes the “right to adequate standard of living” and the “fundamental right to be free from hunger” (ICESCR, 1966). ICESR defines the right to food in terms of “availability” of food either through production from natural resources, production via agriculture, fishing or hunting or sales; “accessibility” whereby physical and economic access to food is ensured; “adequacy” whereby food must satisfy the nutritional requirements of men, women, girls and boys taking into account age, gender, living conditions, etc . The right to food presupposes an individual’s right to feed him/herself in dignity through his/her own efforts and natural resources (ibid).
The Haitian Constitution explicitly guarantees the right to food. Article 22 stipulates that “[t]he State recognizes the right of every citizen to decent housing, education, food and social security” (Haiti Constitution 1987, Article 22). Furthermore, the Government accepted the Paris Agreement signed by 198 countries in December 2015. It was the first country in the region to integrate environment and climate change in its migration policy and to mainstream migration into its position on climate change negotiations.
Despite Constitutional guarantees and international efforts, the right to food has been broadly violated in Haiti. From the above mentioned dimensions of food security, Haitians lack all of it. Neither accessibility, availability nor safety and affordability can be met. Children and other vulnerable groups are most severely affected with food insecurity. Inadequate nourishment and unhygienic environment make children more vulnerable to severe diseases, it also devastates and impacts on child’s physical and cognitive capabilities. It is decisive that all efforts of the national and international communities should focus on stabilizing food security in Haiti, urging and assisting the Haitian state to fulfill its human rights obligations, and encouraging international donors to actively assist in this process.
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By Nino Zotikishvili: The European Institute for International Law and International Relations.
