Haiti faces severe food crisis as Iran war drives up oil prices, pushing 200,000 into acute hunger

(SeaPRwire) –   For a factory worker living in Haiti, the conflict unfolding thousands of miles away in Iran means he now has to make a two-hour trek to work and another two-hour walk back home each day, as he can no longer cover the cost of public transit.

One recent morning, 35-year-old Alexandre Joseph voiced his worries about his family’s future out loud enough to draw the attention of people passing by in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital city.

“The government has hiked the prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene, and that hit my family really hard. I can no longer afford to feed my two children with the wage I earn now,” he said.

The conflict in Iran has triggered a sharp surge in oil prices across Haiti, upending critical supply chains, doubling transportation costs, and forcing millions of already undernourished people to cut back on their already limited meals.

Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, has borne the brunt of rising oil prices, which experts warn will deepen the country’s already spiraling humanitarian crisis.

‘Among the most vulnerable nations on Earth’

On April 2, the Haitian government announced a 37% price hike for diesel and a 29% increase for gasoline.

“The impacts are enormous,” said Erwan Rumen, deputy country director for the United Nations World Food Programme in Haiti. “This is one of the most fragile countries across the globe.”

Nearly half of Haiti’s roughly 12 million residents already face severe levels of acute food insecurity. Rumen noted that in recent months, around 200,000 people have slipped from the emergency food insecurity phase into the acute phase, a notable development.

“What is somewhat alarming is seeing how much hard work could essentially be erased by events that are entirely out of our control,” he said. “This segment of the population is extremely vulnerable. They are teetering on the edge of total collapse.”

Gang violence has worsened hunger levels, with armed groups controlling key roadways and disrupting the transport of goods. Rising food prices will only deepen hunger in a country where gangs easily recruit children from families struggling to afford food and money.

Emmline Toussaint, lead coordinator of Mary’s Meals’ BND school-feeding program in Haiti, said gas stations in some regions are selling fuel for 25% to 30% higher than the official government-stipulated price, due to gang violence and challenges trucks face when trying to access certain areas.

She said the U.S.-headquartered nonprofit is forced to use boats and take longer, alternate routes to deliver meals to the 196,000 children it serves across Haiti to avoid run-ins with armed groups.

“The humanitarian crisis we are facing right now is the worst it has ever been,” she said. “So far, we are doing everything we can to avoid scaling back our work. Right now, more than ever, the children need us. … For most of them, the meal we provide is the only one they get each day.”

‘All costs are set to climb’

Fedline Jean-Pierre, a quiet-spoken mother of a 7-year-old boy, sat under the shade of a frayed beach umbrella as she considered raising the prices of carrots, tomatoes and other produce she sells at an open-air market in Port-au-Prince.

“People aren’t making purchases right now because they don’t have the money,” she said, noting she will likely have no choice but to raise prices to make ends meet. “I have a child to provide for.”

The 35-year-old mother said she and her son have lived in a cramped, unhygienic shelter for two years, among the record 1.4 million Haitians displaced by gang violence in recent years.

“The government does nothing to help me,” she said. “Gas prices have gone up now, which means every other cost will rise too.”

Street vendor Maxime Poulard buys charcoal from suppliers to resell for a small profit. He sometimes sells two bags of charcoal a day now, but he expects he will soon only be able to afford to buy half a bag at a time to resell.

“Getting around is expensive, food is expensive, everything costs too much,” he said. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep going.”

According to World Bank data, nearly 40% of Haitians survive on less than $2.15 a day. Meanwhile, Haiti’s economy has shrunk for the seventh consecutive year, with inflation hitting 32% at the end of the 2025 fiscal year.

Joseph, the factory worker, said he plans to sell soft drinks out of his home in the evenings to try to earn extra income, but even that additional money will not be enough: “We are also going to have to cut back on how much we eat each day.”

‘Unimaginable hard choices’

On April 6, Haitians dragged burning tires and other debris to block streets and protest the fuel price hikes in Port-au-Prince, where an estimated 90% of the city is controlled by gangs.

Local media reported gunfire as some Haitian protesters forced drivers of the small, brightly colored local buses known as tap-taps to let all their passengers disembark.

Marc Jean-Louis, a 29-year-old tap-tap driver, said more and more passengers are trying to negotiate lower fares, but he cannot afford to offer any discounts.

“All my earnings go straight to paying for gas,” he said as he called on the government to lower prices “so that everyone can get some relief.”

Haitians are bracing for more violence as poverty and hunger levels across the country continue to deepen.

Rumen, with the UN World Food Programme, said the organization has been unable to reach 60,000 people waiting for aid in Haiti’s central region. A powerful gang recently attacked the area, killing more than 70 people, per UN figures.

“We are going to see greater demand for aid while having fewer resources to meet it,” he warned.

Allen Joseph, program manager for Mercy Corps in Haiti, said rising oil prices are crushing the country’s fragile economy: “Families that already spend most of their income on food will be forced to make impossible tradeoffs.”

He warned the price hikes will impact access to basic services, including clean drinking water.

“This is not some abstract inflation figure,” he warned. “It will have a direct impact on people’s ability to survive.”

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This report was filed by Coto from San Juan, Puerto Rico.