The impoverished nation of Haiti was struck by a devastating earthquake on January 12, 2010, believed to be the worst in the country's modern history. As the extent of the disaster unfolds, your donation is greatly needed to allow Save the Children to provide urgently needed medical attention, safe drinking water, and other necessities.

Please donate now to support our responses to affected children and families in Haiti.

Learn more about our emergency response to the earthquake disaster in Haiti.

Save the Children has served the needs of some of Haiti’s poorest children and families since 1978 and recently merged its programs iin Haiti with other members of the International Save the Children Alliance who also have programs there.

Challenges for Children 

Of all the nations in the Western Hemisphere, none has faced greater challenges to improve the lives of its children than Haiti. In addition to its poor development indicators, Haiti is the country most affected by HIV/AIDS outside of sub-Saharan Africa. HIV/AIDS in Haiti dramatically affects the well-being of children whose health is already compromised by poverty and inadequate access to basic health care. 

Key Facts

• Population: 9,035,497
• Size: slightly smaller than Maryland
• Poorest country in western hemisphere
• 80 percent of population lives under the poverty line; 54 percent lives in abject poverty
• More than 2/3rds of labor force do not have jobs
• 2/3rds of population depend on agricultural sector, mainly small-scale subsistence farming
• Four tropical storms in 2008 severely damaged transportation infrastructure and agricultural sector
• Widespread deforestation (to pay off debt ) has resulted in soil erosion, and has exacerbated damage to the economy from frequent natural disasters
• Inadequate clean water supply; access limited to about half the population
• 2.2 percent of population estimated to be HIV positive

Sources: CIA World Factbook 2009; WorldBank.org 2009

Programs in Haiti Prior to January 2010 Earthquake

Protection: In urban areas, including the capital of Port-au-Prince, Save the Children supports welcome centers for street children that provide food and shelter, education and health programs and counseling and play opportunities. Centers offer scholarship assistance so that children can attend school and provide on-site lessons to prepare children for formal schooling. Save the Children also supports children’s rights through direct local interventions and national advocacy. Through a network of children’s clubs, we educate girls and boys on their rights, offers recreational youth activities and endorse positive civic participation.

Education: Save the Children implements a rural education program in community, government and mission schools. Through it, we reach thousands of students in Haiti’s Central Plateau, Southeast and Artibonite regions. We advocate for state recognition and more resources for the country’s growing network of community-run schools. We also pilot school readiness programs for pre-school girls and boys to increase their chances for later educational success.  Primary children benefit from our school health and nutrition activities, receiving de-worming medication, iodine, iron supplementation and hygiene training, all of which help them stay in school. Innovative radio learning programs further extend the reach of our educational initiatives. And, Haiti is also part of Save the Children’s Rewrite the Future campaign to support education in conflict-affected countries.

Community Health: In partnership with the Ministry of Health, Save the Children provides quality primary health care to mothers and young children in the Artibonite and Central provinces. We help prevent and treat malaria, tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases. We also train health care workers, invest in health infrastructure and medical equipment and develop community-based health committees to promote local participation and community well-being. In addition, we vaccinate children, provide them with supplemental vitamins and micronutrients, promote the benefits of breastfeeding and address childhood illnesses such as diarrhea. Save the Children projects also increase access to potable drinking water and oral re-hydration therapies. Reproductive health activities promote family planning, pre- and post-natal visits, safe deliveries and sexual education. 

HIV/AIDS: Save the Children implements an HIV/AIDS program which has been greatly scaled up over the past year. Its goals are to improve access to prevention services and testing and counseling, mobilize community support for orphans and vulnerably children, improve the management of antiretroviral treatment programs and develop a coordinated system of care in the Artibonite, Central, Western and Nippes provinces. Activities include: mobilizing communities to assist persons living with and affected by HIV/AIDS; prevention of mother-to-child transmission; and promotion of safer sexual practices among youth. We help form local support groups and health committees and organize public awareness campaigns such as weekly radio broadcasts. Save the Children also leads a consortium of other organizations which is expanding HIV/AIDS programs into disadvantaged rural areas.

Food Security: Save the Children helps improve the nutritional status of children in eight districts in the Central and Artibonite provinces. We monitor children's nutrition, provide food to pregnant and lactating women, children under age 2 and malnourished children; improve community health and nutrition practices and promote improved agricultural production and marketing to bolster local economic growth. 

Humanitarian Relief: Save the Children provides humanitarian relief and child-centered assistance for children and families affected by natural disasters. Over the past five years, we also have conducted community-based disaster preparedness and mitigation activities.

Sponsorship: In Haiti, Save the Children sponsors are one of our most important resources. Through this support, we improve the lives of thousands of children every year by providing primary education and school health and nutrition programs in the Maïssade district in the Central Plateau. We are currently exploring expansion possibilities to other regions.

Last Updated January 2010