A new UN-backed analysis has revealed a worsening hunger crisis in Haiti, with 5.7 million people — nearly half the population — suffering from acute food insecurity. The findings, published by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), cover the period from September 2025 to February 2026, with projections indicating an even grimmer outlook from March to June 2026.
According to the report, 1.9 million Haitians, or 17 percent of the population, are enduring emergency levels of acute food insecurity, facing severe food shortages, high malnutrition rates, and increased mortality risks. An additional 3.8 million people, or 34 percent, are experiencing crisis levels of food insecurity, often forced to sell vital assets or skip meals to survive.
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The IPC warns that conditions will worsen during the upcoming lean season, when food supplies dwindle and prices surge between harvests. It projects that more than 54 percent of Haiti’s population could experience high levels of hunger by mid-2026.
The crisis is being fueled by multiple overlapping challenges — widespread gang violence, economic collapse, and mass displacement. Armed groups continue to tighten their grip on key territories, disrupting agriculture and trade. Farmers in gang-controlled regions must now negotiate access to their land and share their harvests with armed groups, the report notes. Meanwhile, small business owners have been forced to abandon their operations amid insecurity, causing widespread unemployment.
Displacement has also intensified Haiti’s humanitarian emergency. Many displaced families are living in overcrowded camps with poor sanitation, limited access to clean water, and inadequate healthcare, increasing the risks of cholera outbreaks, sexual violence, and mental health crises, according to the IPC.
Humanitarian agencies are struggling to meet the overwhelming needs, as aid delivery is frequently obstructed by insecurity and funding shortages. To prevent further deterioration, the IPC urges the immediate expansion of social protection programs, along with emergency food assistance and targeted support for vulnerable households to stop them from adopting harmful survival strategies.
Despite ongoing efforts by aid organizations, the report underscores that Haiti’s food crisis is deeply tied to its political instability and security breakdown — conditions that, without urgent international intervention, could push millions more Haitians into hunger in the coming months.
