Overview:
UNDP and OAS are helping Haiti’s police by renovating and rebuilding stations destroyed by gangs and donating 32 vehicles. The effort, backed by international partners, aims to strengthen the police as gang violence surges, displacing 1.3 million people and leaving more than 1,500 dead in three months.
PORT-AU-PRINCE — In a show of support, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Organization of American States (OAS) have been renovating, even rebuilding in some cases, a number of the country’s police stations.
Last week, UNDP delivered a newly renovated police station in Champs-De-Mars—the heart of the capital—to the Haitian National Police (PNH). UNDP also donated 32 vehicles—including 24 patrol armored SUVs and eight ambulance trucks— to the law enforcement institution through a partnership with Japan.
“This rehabilitation is more than a construction project. It is about restoring dignity and providing motivation to the men and women of the Haitian National Police, who continue to serve under incredibly difficult circumstances,” said Xavier Michon, UNDP Haiti Resident Representative.
The upgraded station, situated near the National Palace and the French Embassy, meets current safety and operational standards. The initiative comes as nearly 90% of Port-au-Prince remains under gang control, with hundreds of people killed and at least 1.3 million people displaced nationwide as of June due to rampant violence.
The UNDP project was funded by a coalition of partners, including Canada, Japan, the European Union, the United States, Germany, Italy and Mexico, in coordination with the UN Integrated Bureau in Haiti (BINUH and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
“This rehabilitation is more than a construction project. It is about restoring dignity and providing motivation to the men and women of the Haitian National Police, who continue to serve under incredibly difficult circumstances.”
Xavier Michon, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Capital Development Fund
Additional station rehabilitations took place in Kenscoff and Borgne. In Kenscoff, a commune above Port-au-Prince hills, both the main police station and the Lotin substation were restored with support from the OAS. In Borgne, a northern commune, the local station was fully renovated and brought back online.
Upgrades included solar energy systems, improved sanitation and fortified perimeter barriers. Canada, working through the OAS office in Haiti, played a key role in funding and coordination.
“This effort marks a significant step toward rebuilding a functional and efficient police infrastructure,” said Cristobal Dupouy, Special Representative of the OAS Secretary-General in Haiti.
“It will help the police better carry out their mission of ‘serving and protecting’ the Haitian population, especially in these challenging times.”
The 32 vehicles handed over on Aug. 2, were described by Michon as “designed for Haiti’s terrain and built for durability and emergency response.”
The donation supports greater mobility and quicker response times in critical zones, according to UNDP, which is also investing in training centers, forward operating bases and improved detention conditions.
“This is part of a broader partnership between Japan and UNDP to reinforce Haiti’s security sector,” Michon said.
“The international community is urged to support the full deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission and to step up efforts against arms trafficking.”
Ulrika Richardson, Interim Head of UN Integrated Bureau in Haiti
These efforts come as Haiti’s security crisis reaches a breaking point. According to the BINUH, more than 1,500 people were killed from April to June 2025. Another 609 were injured, 185 kidnapped, and 628 cases of sexual violence were recorded—mostly in Port-au-Prince, followed by Artibonite and Centre departments.
Criminal groups now operate beyond the capital, extending their control into other regions through gang rapes, murders, child exploitation, drugs and human trafficking.
“Gang attacks in the Artibonite, Centre, and the capital continue to result in serious human rights violations and are worsening an already critical humanitarian crisis,” said Ulrika Richardson, interim head of BINUH.
She called for urgent international backing for the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) and for efforts to curb arms trafficking.
US pressure and OAS roadmap seek stabilization
Meanwhile, the U.S. has condemned attempts at corruption that could destabilize Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council (CPT). In a post on X, the U.S. Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs reaffirmed support for the CPT’s efforts in working with the prime minister and warned that it would hold accountable those who attempt to derail the transition.
The warning coincides with the OAS’s July 30 unveiling of a $1.37 billion plan for Haiti’s recovery. Presented during the inaugural Friends of Haiti meeting, the plan outlines five intervention areas:
- $908.2 million for humanitarian aid
- $256.1 million for sustainable development
- $104.1 million for elections and institutional support
- $5.1 million for political consensus-building
- $96 million—about 7%—for security stabilization and peacebuilding
“The roadmap is based on the belief that restoring stability in Haiti requires a clear and unified strategy, led by Haitians, that delivers tangible results,” said Albert Ramdin, OAS Assistant Secretary General.
The OAS, which consists in the majority of Latin American countries, will present the plan to its Permanent Council as requested by the organization’s June 27 resolution. The Latin American nations have also called for a donor conference to be hosted by the Inter-American Development Bank. The roadmap emphasizes Haitian ownership, inclusion of civil society and alignment with local priorities.
Last week, the president of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council (CPT), Fritz Alphonse Jean, told a group of international reporters that countries like Brazil, Colombia and Mexico plan to provide training to over 700 PNH officers. 400 police officers will leave for Brazil this month, with 150 soldiers from Haiti’s Armed Forces (FAd’H) already sent to Mexico as part of regional support.
During the interview on July 27, Jean also acknowledged the existence of a contract with a foreign private security firm assisting the Haitian National Police (PNH) without giving further details.