![Haiti aid hard to come by one month after hurricane](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2016/11/_2/740x404/pic_1478370329_3.jpg)
Haiti Aid Hard To Come By One Month After Hurricane
Mohammad Ali (@ChaudhryMAli88) Published November 05, 2016 | 11:10 PM
![Haiti aid hard to come by one month after hurricane](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2016/11/_2/740x404/pic_1478370329_3.jpg)
LES CAYES, Haiti(APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 05th Nov, 2016 ) - Uprooted trees still litter fields and beaches in southern Haiti, as if Hurricane Matthew left its trail of death and destruction only yesterday.
Except for blue plastic tarps that now cover damaged homes, the scene one month after the storm is practically identical to the days immediately following Matthew's devastating October 4 landfall.
Among the felled coconut trees, a single plastic tarp offers little protection from the elements for Jean Robert Sima and his 92-year-old father, who rests on a mattress. "A man I had done some work for, is letting us use his house to spend the night because he is abroad, but that's only for a few days" and only at night, Sima said.
Every day, Sima and his family visit the ruins of their home, which he hopes to rebuild. But with his crops ruined, he has no money to buy materials and is unable to find any help. - 'People grow agitated' - ========================== The southern region of Haiti, considered the country's breadbasket, was hardest-hit by the powerful storm, which packed winds of 150 miles (250 kilometers) per hour and killed 546 people, according to official figures.
Thirty miles away in Les Cayes, the capital of the southern department, a teenager was shot dead on Tuesday as a ship was unloading humanitarian aid. "When aid is distributed, people grow agitated and belligerent," Sima's wife, Jiland, said.
"The Haitian officials are dishonest because they first take aid for their loved ones. You can be there with your kids and nothing else, but they still won't give you anything," she said. Receiving aid is a challenge for the tens of thousands of local residents in part because there have been no comprehensive surveys of how much assistance is needed due to the extent of the damaged area.
Just two miles away, a religious group has discreetly distributed plastic tarps and tools to build temporary shelters. "We conducted surveys in remote areas to verify who is in need," said Bertrand Enoc with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA).
Hundreds of people have received emergency kits from a truck parked inside the police station in the small town of Roche-a-Bateaux. "We cannot help everyone, so some people will receive nothing and could be tempted to protest in the streets," Enoc said.
The lucky families head to their damaged homes with aid packages tied to motorcycle taxis or on mules, under the jealous gaze of downtown residents. - 'Never enough' - ================== "From the people's point of view it's never enough and they are right," said John Ging, director of operations for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
"But if we take a step back and we see the number that has been reached, the quality of the assistance, it is a good operation. It does need, of course, to speed up -- but it also needs to be done properly," said Ging, who was in southern Haiti on Friday.
Meanwhile, the issue of security is paramount for agencies distributing aid. "It's a legitimate frustration, but of course expressing their frustration in ways like looting the aid, creating security problems at aid distribution, that's not going to help anybody," Ging said.
The World Food Program has distributed food assistance to nearly 400,000 people one month after Hurricane Matthew, but the UN estimates nearly four times that number are in need. One major problem remains insufficient funding: The World Food Program needs $58 million to carry out its work in Haiti and organize the difficult logistics to reach remote areas.
So far it has only $18 million. Such underfunding is exasperating for Ging, who complains of rich nations shirking their commitments. "If the G7 and the G20 (groups of nations) would step up to their state of commitment of 0.7 percent of (gross national income) for overseas development aid, we would have another $158 billion available for humanitarian and development assistance," he said.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
![Cricket: England v West Indies 3rd Test scoreboard](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019914.jpg)
Cricket: England v West Indies 3rd Test scoreboard
![Finance minister briefs Chinese officials on refor ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019922.jpg)
Finance minister briefs Chinese officials on reform agenda, engagement with IMF
![Finland says Russian vessel violated its territori ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019912.jpg)
Finland says Russian vessel violated its territorial waters
![Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019266.jpg)
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
![West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019264.jpg)
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
![Ukraine court orders detention of suspect in murde ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019262.jpg)
Ukraine court orders detention of suspect in murder of nationalist ex-MP
![Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris ope ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019015.jpg)
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
![Rana Sanaullah Khan joins Paris 2024 Olympics inau ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019638.jpg)
Rana Sanaullah Khan joins Paris 2024 Olympics inauguration reception
![Glowing tributes mark 69th birthday of President Z ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019637.jpg)
Glowing tributes mark 69th birthday of President Zardari at Governor's House
![Players unaware of spying scandal as Canada Olympi ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019635.jpg)
Players unaware of spying scandal as Canada Olympic coach sent home: official
![Naqvi hails Pak women cricketers for going down fi ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019013.jpg)
Naqvi hails Pak women cricketers for going down fighting against SL
!['Sabotage' on French rail network before Olympics: ..](https://photo-cdn.urdupoint.com/media/2024/07/_1/235x155/pic_1722019634.jpg)
'Sabotage' on French rail network before Olympics: What we know
More Stories From World
-
Biden talks Gaza ceasefire efforts with king of Jordan
5 hours ago -
Sinaloa Cartel co-founder pleads not guilty after stunning US capture
5 hours ago -
Panama says Venezuela blocked ex-presidents going to observe polls
5 hours ago -
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
5 hours ago -
Khan Yunis fighting displaces 180,000 Gazans in four days: UN
5 hours ago -
Trump slams rivals as he meets Netanyahu in Florida
5 hours ago
-
Obama & his wife, Michelle, officially endorse US VP Kamala Harris for president
5 hours ago -
Rain, cooling slow huge blaze in Canada's Jasper park
5 hours ago -
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
5 hours ago -
S.African police detain 95 Libyans at suspected military camp
6 hours ago -
'Slapping therapist' guilty over UK diabetic woman's death
6 hours ago -
Panama says Venezuela blocked flight of ex-presidents going to observe polls
6 hours ago