PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – The head of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in Haiti, Godfrey Otunge, has called on countries to support the initiative, one year after troops from the African country landed here.
“As a new model, funded by voluntary partners, the mission faces challenges, including funding, personnel, and logistics, that are being addressed to enable the mission to achieve its objectives on schedule,” Otunge said of the United Nations Security Council-backed mission.
According to the United Nations, gang violence has displaced an estimated 1.3 million people from their homes, fueling hunger and insecurity. At the same time, hospitals have shut their doors, and much of the economy, judicial system, and government remain paralysed.
Despite the lack of resources, Otunge said on Thursday that the mission had managed to establish two key strategic bases in the Artibonite department, the area outside the capital that has been worst-hit by the violence.
In her remarks, Special UN Representative Maria Salvador reviewed the MSS’s achievements over the past year, acknowledging that the mission is not yet fully funded or equipped, but emphasized the importance of recognizing its concrete actions.
She recalled that in February of this year, UN Secretary-General António Guterres presented proposals to the Security Council to strengthen the mission, proposals that deserve priority attention given the importance of its mandate.
The MSS’s spokesperson, Jacques Umbaka, stated that there is a shortage of both human and material resources, maintaining that the mission would have already been completed if the resources required had been made available.
He defended the amount of information disseminated regarding the MSS operations, saying this is strategic and “the mission is careful not to disclose sensitive information.”
June 25 marked the first anniversary of the deployment of 400 Kenyan police officers, who arrived on the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) speaking country that is facing security, social and econnomic problems caused mainly by criminal gangs that intent on removing the interim government ever since President Jovenel Moise was assassinated at his private residence on July 7, 2021.
While countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, Jamaica, and the Bahamas have contributed troops, several other countries are yet to fulfill their commitments.
Last Wednesday, the CARICOM Eminent Persons Group (EPG) stated that it has been in contact with stakeholders in Haiti to gauge their willingness to meet and discuss the current situation in the country.
In a statement, the EPG, comprising former St. Lucia prime minister Dr. Kenny Anthony, the former Jamaican prime minister, Bruce Golding and their former Bahamian counterpart, Perry Christie, said that the meeting with the “nominated stakeholders” is necessary since Haiti is “at a critical point in time in the transition process.
”In this regard, the views of the stakeholders would be of importance when the CARICOM Heads of Government meet in Conference in Jamaica, in early July 2025, to discuss regional issues on their agenda, amongst which are the situation in Haiti and CARICOM’s continued support for the Haitian people and country,” the EPG said in its statement.
The UN Security Council has scheduled a special session for June 30 following a letter from Dominican President Luis Abinader and co-signed by three former Dominican heads of state, urging immediate international action to address instability in Haiti.
While the UN had hoped that the MSS mission would deploy around 2,500 troops, less than half are currently deployed.
Last week, in a note sent to the UN Security Council, Kenyan President William Ruto stated that, while 991 troops were currently deployed, many others were on standby because existing contracts for logistical support could not accommodate them.
“The MSS is also operating below the required capabilities in terms of equipment and operational support necessary to execute the mission effectively. The equipment levels stand at below 30 per cent of planned capabilities,” said Ruto, expressing frustration with the international community’s limited financial and logistical commitment.
In a letter addressed to the President of the UN Security Council and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the Kenyan President stated that only 40 percent of the pledged personnel have been deployed, and just $US68 million, or 11 percent of the expected $ US600 million, had been disbursed.
“We are compelled to reconsider our commitment,” Ruto wrote, calling for an urgent response before the current mandate of the mission expires.
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