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Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged a $60 million support package for Haiti after meeting the country’s Transitional President, Laurent Saint-Cyr, at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday.
The funding will be split between $40 million for international security operations and $20 million to combat gun and drug trafficking in the region.
The pledge comes as Haiti faces widespread gang rule, where armed groups now control nearly 90 per cent of the capital, Port-au-Prince.
According to the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, around 300 criminal gangs are active that possess between 270,000 and 500,000 firearms. The gangs pose a challenge to the Haitian Army, which has only around 1,300 active personnel as of July.
Gang violence shook the nation last year, leading to over 4,800 deaths between October 2024 and June 2025, according to the UN.
Other destabilizing factors include endemic corruption, a collapse of basic public services, and a weak police force struggling to maintain territory.
Criminal networks have infiltrated political and economic sectors, using illicit trade, kidnappings and extortion to finance their operations.
Canada’s announcement ties the funding to the ongoing Multinational Security Support mission, led by Kenya, and aligns with calls from the U.S. and other nations for an expanded gang suppression force under UN oversight.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Canada’s support is contingent on the United Nations endorsing an expanded mission.
“Canada continues to stand with the people of Haiti as they face immense political, security and humanitarian challenges,” she said in a statement. Canada hosts one of the largest Haitian diasporas in the world, with nearly 180,000 Haitians living in the country according to the 2021 census.
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[SRC] https://www.junonews.com/p/carney-pledges-60m-aid-package-to
