Port-au-Prince – February 2026
The UNICEF has warned that the recruitment of children by armed groups in Haiti tripled last year, as escalating violence and deepening poverty continue to destabilize the Caribbean nation.
In a report released this week, UNICEF said worsening gang control, displacement, and economic hardship have left thousands of children vulnerable to exploitation by armed groups.
According to Geeta Narayan, UNICEF’s representative in Haiti, children now make up an estimated 30 to 50 percent of armed group members, with some recruits as young as nine years old.
“This is devastating,” Narayan said, highlighting the severe psychological and physical risks facing children caught in the country’s spiraling insecurity.
Record Displacement
The surge in child recruitment comes amid unprecedented internal displacement. An estimated 1.4 million people have been forced from their homes due to gang violence — more than half of them children.
Humanitarian experts warn that displaced children, separated from families and lacking access to education or protection services, are particularly susceptible to recruitment, coercion, and abuse.
Entire neighborhoods in the capital, Port-au-Prince, remain under the control of armed groups, limiting access to schools, healthcare, and humanitarian aid.
Awaiting UN Assessment
The United Nations Secretary-General is expected to provide a detailed breakdown of child recruitment figures in his upcoming annual report on Haiti, due in the coming months.
International aid agencies have repeatedly called for urgent funding to expand child protection services, safe shelters, psychosocial support, and reintegration programs for children who escape armed groups.
A Growing Humanitarian Crisis
Haiti has faced years of political instability, economic collapse, and escalating gang violence. Aid organizations warn that without immediate intervention, the crisis could worsen further, placing even more children at risk.
UNICEF is urging the international community to increase support for Haiti, stressing that protecting children must remain central to any long-term stabilization strategy.
“Children are paying the highest price for a crisis they did not create,” the agency said.