Haiti's Vulnerable Children

The people of Haiti are suffering. Violent criminal gangs perpetrate kidnappings, sexual violence, murder, and child trafficking. Over half the country is facing extreme food insecurity and 1.4 million people are internally displaced. For comparison, Haiti is about the size of Maryland, so it would be like 11% of the population of Maryland displaced and without homes.

Criminal gangs control about 90% of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas, as well as large parts of the Artibonite and Center Departments. A Department is like a State. Quixote Center partners in Artibonite are among those impacted. Just last week there was a massacre in Artibonite: our partners report that 80 people were killed and thousands more displaced.

An entire generation of children is at risk. According to a new report from the United Nations, all of Haiti’s 26 gangs are engaged in child trafficking, for the purpose of recruiting for criminal activity and sexual abuse. Of the 26,188 people reported killed or injured between January 2022 and December 2025, 806 were children. During this same period, armed groups kidnapped 220 children. More than 1,600 schools are closed across Haiti, and more than 53% of the 1.4 million people displaced are children. (pp. 11-13)

The UN report recommends a set of remedies to protect vulnerable children (pp. 6-9): social programs for displaced families; keep schools open; provide safe spaces for children; vocational training for youth; implement a set of justice and law enforcement measures to reduce the power of criminal gangs and rehabilitate children.

Through our partnership with the Lachandle Catholic Church in Gros Morne, located in Artibonite, Quixote Center has been supporting vulnerable displaced children and their parents since last year. We provided cash assistance to 250 families displaced by violence who were resettling in Gros Morne, so that they could purchase food or housing. We paid school tuition for 100 kids, which helped to keep operational a handful of private and public schools in Gros Morne. We also supported several days of winter break camp for the displaced kids in the parish, and expect to do the same this summer. Just last month we provided grants to 100 displaced families to start small businesses or obtain a small plot of land so that they can support themselves and build a new life.

We are currently working on the development of a new program to support entrepreneurial training for youth in the South. Our advocacy work to end arms trafficking addresses a root cause of gang violence: easy access to weapons manufactured in the United States. On this last point, we are prioritizing passing the ARMAS Act and are organizing for in-person advocacy, now scheduled for September.

We find the statistics on Haiti demoralizing and sad. Our own country’s failure to rein in gun dealers causes violence and death in Haiti and across the globe. We take heart in each of you, in your compassion, and in the spiritual and financial support you offer to us and our work. Thank you.

HERE you can find a fact sheet on the situation in Haiti and the role of illegal weapons trafficking.  Please feel free to distribute.