Anthony Lake, Executive Director of UNICEF and Josette Sheeran, Executive Director of World Food Program (WFP) called this week to not ignore the progress made by the humanitarian community in assisting victims of the earthquake of January 12, 2010 in Haiti, even if the task remains enormous one year later.

Anthony Lake said that since the earthquake, the UN and its agencies had been confronted with "a Herculean task" with "the worst humanitarian scenario in one of the poorest countries of the world [...] there are huge and unprecedented obstacles" stressing however that "Thousands of children were reunited with their families. Nearly 100,000 continue to enjoy areas specially adapted to their needs, when psychosocial care are offered. The new campaign "All to school" has also helped to provide education to 80% of children directly affected by the earthquake".

He believes that "the UN and its agencies can and must do better to concentrate the aid pledged on individuals and the communities most in need [...] it is particularly vital to ensure better coordination between government, international humanitarian community and local NGOs and do more to support community efforts in their own reconstruction. [...] When there is so much to achieve, when so many people continue to suffer, this is not the time for self-satisfaction or for self-flagellation. [...] Faced with a tragedy of such magnitude, it is natural to look for responsible and far more difficult to see the hero. But while we recognize frankly what does not work in Haiti, we must also see what has been done properly and continue to build on this progress," he concluded.

Josette Sheeran, she has also recalled that the earthquake of January 12, 2010 was "pushed to its limits the humanitarian expertise" of WFP, whose the responses capacity have been confronted to "the magnitude and complexity of the situation".

She recalled that despite these circumstances, within the six weeks that followed the earthquake, WFP had distributed food to nearly 4 million Haitians and he still continued to provide today, food aid to about 2 million people through various programs in place: "school meals, work against money, nutritional support for pregnant and lactating women and their children. [...] All these actions are part of a massive recovery effort who allowed to do much during the past year, even if there is still much to do. She stressed the need to strengthen coordination among UN agencies, civil society, the Haitian government and NGOs "We are all engaged in a joint humanitarian project, which is far from over. [...] The WFP was in Haiti before the earthquake and we will stay as long as necessary, so that Haiti knows a future free from hunger"

HL/ HaitiLibre