As the king and queen of the United Kingdom visit the United States, Haiti is getting a royal visit of its own: Princess Sarah Zeid of Jordan is visiting the Caribbean country — whose freed Blacks and future king helped fight for America’s freedom in the Battle of Savannah during the Revolutionary War — at the invitation of the United Nations, getting a first-hand look at the deepening humanitarian crisis driven by the country’s unrelenting gang violence.
Princess Sarah arrived in Port-au-Prince on Monday aboard a U.N. World Food Program helicopter to see the agency’s humanitarian response. She was received by the organization’s country director, Wanja Kaaria. Haiti is one of the world’s top hunger hotspots.
Among the royal’s stops was a camp housing some of the nearly 1.5 million Haitians displaced by gangs. During the visit, the princess focused on the situation facing women and children who, forced to live in the camps, face heightened risks of sexual violence.
The high-profile visit comes as Haiti continues to experience severe hunger amid a deepening humanitarian crisis driven by armed gangs, which control large swaths of Port-au-Prince and are expanding into other regions.
Recently, the United States, through the Food for Peace program, donated rice, beans and vegetable oil. The emergency food aid will provide assistance to more than 390,000 Haitians over the next 18 months, the World Food Program said.
The agency said it plans to distribute the provisions in four monthly rations to 227,500 Haitians facing the highest levels of hunger, as well as to recently displaced families, ensuring that those most at risk receive support. The aid will also enable the organization to provide fortified cereals and specialized foods to targeted households, while organizing malnutrition screenings and awareness sessions for families, including those living in displacement sites, to help prevent child malnutrition.
Given Haiti’s vulnerability to extreme weather, the contribution also includes 3,300 tons of food to be pre-positioned as reserves.
“In a context where 5.9 million people — more than half of the Haitian population — suffer from acute or severe food insecurity, this contribution will enable the World Food Program to rapidly reach the most vulnerable communities with life-saving assistance,” the agency said in a statement.
Earlier this month, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the program requires $332 million to maintain its crucial operations over the year.
“If enough funding is secured, the agency plans to reach more than 2.7 million people with critical emergency and resilience building support,” he said.