Credit:AFP/D. MOREL

"We're in a race against time, and we can't lose a day," says Anthony Banbury at the U.N. mission in Haiti.

The need is still urgent. Six-months after a devastating earthquake struck this poor country, untold human suffering continues.  And now, when the headlines and news cameras are gone, we call upon our most committed supporters - such as you.

More than 1.9 million people were made homeless, their livelihoods destroyed. Many families are now forced to live without sanitation in large, mud-filled camp settlements in the midst of crushed buildings.

The injured are recovering in makeshift camps without shelter. With the upcoming hurricane season, each day presents a new challenge – especially for children, many of whom are now orphans without parents to protect them.

Time is of the essence. 

Your generous support will help continue to provide urgently needed protection, shelter and basic survival kits to help keep these men, women, and children alive. 

Amid the chaos, UNHCR is working to ensure that human rights are protected, especially for women, children and elderly.

More than 600,000 people have fled the disaster zone to outlying, poverty-stricken communities. With the rainy and hurricane season, flooding and mud slides threaten the lives of several thousands more. Most are staying with host families in areas that lack adequate electricity, water distribution systems and paved roads. Disease is a growing threat.

“In the countryside, local resources are severely overstretched,” explains UNHCR team leader Gonzalo Vargas Llosa. “Rural host communities need our help to cope with the tens of thousands of arrivals,” he adds.

“The host families are also silent and invisible victims of this tragedy,” he adds. “At the same time, by taking in thousands of relatives and friends from Port-au-Prince, they are playing an instrumental role in the overall humanitarian response.”

On behalf of the survivors and their generous, resilient host families, we thank you for playing a role in helping the people of Haiti survive this terrible tragedy.