In addition to the 1.5 million people facing food insecurity, a further 6.7 million people in Haiti are struggling to meet their own food needs on a regular basis.

Before the hurricane season, which runs from June to November, the World Food Programme (WFP) had pre-positioned emergency supplies to cover the needs of 300,000 people for two days with ready-to-use food and for four weeks with staple food rations. The agency also had established agreements with 15 partners and had begun emergency distribution to 200,000 beneficiaries through schools in the worst-affected communities.

In a press briefing in Geneva, WFP spokesperson Elisabeth Byrs said the agency plans to assist 1.1 million people in 2013, more than half of them children, through school meals and specialized food to treat malnutrition.

Meanwhile, the National Coordination for Food Security identified 44 communes in Haiti where the prevalence of severe food insecurity was above 50 per cent of the rural population, and WFP said it is also providing come 34,000 vulnerable people in rural areas with income opportunities via cash for assets programmes.

However, Ms. Byrs noted that WFP urgently needs $ 17.2 million in funding to meet these needs, and added that the agency is currently facing a shortfall of $ 1.5 million to cover emergency preparedness.

Legislative and elections were due to take place in January 2012 at the latest, but in spite of an agreement signed in December between the executive and legislative branches to form an electoral commission, there have been no new developments.

“In the absence of these elections, over the past year we have seen the replacement of some 130 elected municipal governments with Presidential appointees,” said the Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), Nigel Fisher.

At the legislative level, the mandate of one-third of Haiti’s senators expired in May 2012 and more terms will end in early 2014, impairing the Senate’s functions, Fisher warned.

“Holding credible elections in 2013 is fundamental to reinforce Haiti’s democratic institutions, strengthen the rule of law and respond to the urgent needs of Haiti’s citizens such as employment and social protection.”

The Caribbean nation has been re-building since the earthquake that struck in early January 2010, killing some 220,000 people and making 1.5 million others homeless, in addition to causing widespread destruction – particularly in the capital, Port-au-Prince – and a major humanitarian crisis.

Fisher added that, over the past year, Haiti has continued to face many challenges, including a slow economic growth rate that fell below forecasted levels, high unemployment rates, a recent spike in cholera cases, two tropical storms, and regional droughts that have exacerbated the high levels of food insecurity facing many households.

“Progress on elections has become the barometer for measuring progress towards a more inclusive political culture and for addressing institutional and development challenges, but Haiti faces many challenges beyond the electoral process alone,” Mr. Fisher said, adding that in spite of these obstacles, advances are still being made and the security situation remains stable overall.

Regarding the cholera epidemic, Fisher said the UN is committed to continue its support and to redouble efforts to mobilize the significant additional resources needed to fight this disease, improve water and sanitation, and strengthen the national health care network.

“I remain convinced that Haiti can and will make great progress in overcoming the political divisions, engaging in important and necessary reforms in the institutional and State law and responding to the urgent needs of its citizens,” he added.

In November 2011, a claim for compensation was brought against the UN on behalf of victims of the cholera outbreak in Haiti.

“Today, the United Nations advised the claimants’ representatives that the claims are not receivable pursuant to Section 29 of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations,” spokesperson Martin Nesirky told reporters in New York.

Mr. Ban, in a telephone call to Haitian President Michel Martelly, informed him of the decision and reiterated the UN’s commitment to eliminating the disease in Haiti, Mr. Nesirky added.

“Since the outbreak began in 2010, the United Nations and its partners have worked closely with the people and Government of Haiti to provide treatment, improve water and sanitation facilities and strengthen prevention and early warning,” he noted.

In December 2012, Mr. Ban launched an initiative for the elimination of cholera in Haiti, which aims to strengthen Haiti’s own National Cholera Elimination Plan through significant investments and the use of an oral cholera vaccine.

Following the launch of the initiative, the Secretary-General appointed renowned United States physician Paul Farmer to help galvanize support to eliminate cholera in Haiti, where the disease had already claimed over 7,750 lives by the end of 2012.

The initiative will invest in prevention, treatment, and education, and focus on the extension of clean drinking water and sanitation systems as well as the use of an oral vaccine to combat cholera, an acute intestinal infection caused by consuming contaminated food or water.

“The Secretary-General again expresses his profound sympathy for the terrible suffering caused by the cholera epidemic, and calls on all partners in Haiti and the international community to work together to ensure better health and a better future for the people of Haiti,” Mr. Nesirky said.

According to the initial results of the Haiti Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), which covered 13,350 households, 77 per cent of children aged 6-11 years attended primary school in 2012, compared to just below 50 per cent in 2005-2006 when the last survey was conducted.

Acute malnutrition among children aged 6-59 months has been reduced by half from 10 per cent to five per cent, and chronic malnutrition has been cut from 29 per cent to 22 per cent between 2005-2006 and 2012.

“Results of the survey show that the efforts of partners in Haiti in these three years contributed to progress in many sectors and mitigated the impact on children of the 2010 earthquake, the outbreak of cholera and other disasters.” said the representative of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Haiti, Edouard Beigbeder.

“These findings call for a continued commitment to support the country in sustaining this success while addressing existing challenges and where progress has lagged,” he continued.

The Caribbean nation has been re-building since the earthquake struck in early January 2010, killing some 220,000 people and making 1.5 million others homeless, in addition to causing widespread destruction – particularly in the capital, Port-au-Prince – and a major humanitarian crisis.

The DHS 2012 was conducted by the Institut Haitien de l’Enfance, under the overall direction of the country’s Ministry of Population and Public Health, and was supported by UNICEF and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), amongst others.

The survey also notes that the under-five mortality rate, at 88 child deaths per 1,000 live births, has shown a declining trend in the last 15 years, according to new estimates, down from 112 in 1997-2001 and 96 in 2002-2006.

Access to improved sources of water remained unchanged at 65 per cent, while 82 per cent of residents of internally displaced camps had access to improved sources of water. Access to improved sanitation almost doubled from 14 per cent in 2005-2006 to 26 per cent in 2012.

The 2012 Haiti DHS estimates socio-economic, demographic and health indicators for the entire Haitian population, including women of child-bearing age, children under five years of age, men aged between 15 and 59 years old. The last survey took place between October 2005 and June 2006.

The United Nations relief agency said today that 1.8 million Haitians and Cubans have been affected by hurricane Sandy, adding that food security remains an urgent concern in the Caribbean nation.

Initial data collected by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) showed that Hurricane Sandy killed 60 people and significantly damaged critical infrastructure such as roads, schools and hospitals in addition to destroying thousands of homes.

“Floodwater had been receding since Sunday but more than 18,000 homes have been flooded, damaged or destroyed,” Jens Laerke, OCHA spokesperson told reporters in Geneva. Preliminary data estimated that food security had been severely affected, Mr. Laerke said, with up to two million people at risk of malnutrition.

OCHA is also concerned about the nearly 350,000 people that are still living in camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a result of the earthquake which hit the country in January 2010; in fact, some 1,500 people remain in 15 hurricane shelters.

The UN World Health Organization (WHO) reported that access to health services and restocking supplies is limited as rivers had become impassable and roads had been obstructed. It also warned that poor sanitary conditions could increase the risk of water-borne diseases such as cholera, which is still endemic in the country. The WHO spokesperson said there has already been an increase in cholera alerts, especially in the south, and added that field teams are monitoring the situation.

Cuba was also affected by the hurricane. OCHA’s Mr. Laemke said that power cuts affected more than 890,000 people, and nearly 200,000 homes were damaged by the storm. In addition, 375 health centres and 2,100 schools were damaged.

UN humanitarian agencies are working closely with national and local authorities, donors and emergency organizations to support national efforts. An emergency cash grant of $100,000 has been approved and a request for the UN Central Emergency Response Fund is under preparation.

The head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ (OCHA) operation in Haiti, Johan Peleman, said that relief workers are still consolidating data of the destruction caused by the storm and a full picture of the situation will take some time.

Meanwhile, he noted, between 15,000 and 20,000 people have seen their houses completely destroyed, damaged or flooded as a result of the storm.

OCHA is particularly concerned because Haiti had been hit by a long period of drought this year as well as by another hurricane, Isaac, which hit the impoverished country in August.

“Now with this new tropical storm, we fear that a great deal of the harvest which was ongoing in the south of the country may have been destroyed completely,” Mr. Peleman said in an interview with UN Radio.

“Already, the drought and the previous storm had hit the northern part of the country very badly and we had seen the levels of food insecurity rise there,” he added. “With the south being hit now, we are going to face in the next couple of months very serious problems of malnutrition and food insecurity.”

There are approximately 1.2 million people who are facing food insecurity in the country, which is already the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and is still recovering from a devastating earthquake in January 2010.

Mr. Peleman noted that there are still 350,000 people living in camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a result of the earthquake and the effect of Hurricane Sandy on this group was a major concern.

“The most vulnerable IDPs that were living in camps have been evacuated before the storm and we are now, with the humanitarian community and the UN family, repairing tents, handing out new tarpaulins so that they can go back to live in more favourable conditions because a lot of light structures were obviously completely destroyed by the storm,” he stated.

Access is also a concern since a number of roads have been rendered unusable due to the hurricane, making it more difficult to reach those in need, Mr. Peleman added. In addition, water holes and sanitation systems will need to be drained as quickly as possible, given the fear of an outbreak of water-borne diseases, specifically cholera. The disease is still endemic in the country and he expected to now see a surge in the cases of cholera. Preparations were taken ahead of Hurricane Sandy, in partnership with the Haitian authorities and with the support of the UN peacekeeping mission in the country (MINUSTAH), Mr. Peleman noted, including contingency planning and the pre-deployment of food stocks, tents, tarpaulins, medical kits and hygiene kits.

“The country is relatively well prepared but it is also very vulnerable to this type of disaster, not just because of the poverty but because of decades of deforestation and erosion,” he noted.

In addition, MINUSTAH is also supporting Government efforts to deal with the hurricane’s aftermath, responding to requests to help with logistics and engineering, such as the clearing of roads.

Hurricane Sandy also caused deaths, damage and destruction along the east coast of the US, including in New York where the UN is headquartered. The world body’s offices were closed for an unprecedented three days straight, with most meetings cancelled, and re-opened yesterday.