PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A 37% diesel price increase imposed by Haiti's government on April 2 is forcing workers to abandon public transportation and families to skip meals, as global oil-market disruptions linked to conflict in Iran compound the Western Hemisphere's most severe humanitarian crisis.
Alexandre Joseph, a 35-year-old factory worker in Port-au-Prince, now walks two hours to his job and two hours home each day because he can no longer afford the fare. "The government raised the prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene, hitting my family. I now am unable to feed my two children on the salary I have," he said. Joseph plans to sell soft drinks at night from his home to supplement his income, adding, "We're also going to reduce the way we normally eat."
Global Markets Meet Local Collapse
The conflict in Iran has caused oil prices in Haiti to surge, disrupting critical supply chains, doubling transportation costs and forcing millions of undernourished people to cut back on already scarce meals. The April 2 announcement included a 37% increase in diesel and a 29% increase in gasoline, compounding pressures in a country where nearly 40% of the population survives on less than $2.15 a day, according to the World Bank.
Erwan Rumen, deputy country director for the United Nations World Food Program in Haiti, said, "The consequences are huge," noting that almost half of Haiti's nearly 12 million inhabitants already face high levels of acute food insecurity. In recent months, about 200,000 people dropped from the emergency phase to the acute one. "What is a bit frightening is to see that so many efforts could be basically wiped out by things that are completely out of our control," Rumen said. "This part of the population is extremely fragile. They're on the verge of collapsing completely."
Haiti's economy contracted for the seventh consecutive year, with inflation reaching 32% at the end of fiscal year 2025.
Gang Violence Multiplies Costs
Gang violence has exacerbated the crisis, with armed men controlling key roads and disrupting the transportation of goods. Emmline Toussaint, main coordinator of Mary's Meals' BND school-feeding program in Haiti, said gas stations in some regions are selling fuel 25% to 30% higher than even what the government stipulated because of gang violence and difficulties with trucks trying to access certain areas. The U.S.-based nonprofit is forced to use boats and take longer and multiple roads to feed the 196,000 children they serve across Haiti to avoid armed groups.
"The humanitarian crisis that we're facing right now is at its worst," Toussaint said. "So far, we are doing our best not to step back. Now, more than ever, the kids need us. … Most of them, it's the only meal they receive."
An estimated 90% of Port-au-Prince is controlled by gangs. Haitians dragged burning tires and other debris to block streets and protest the fuel-price increase in the capital on April 6. Local media reported gunfire as some Haitians forced the drivers of small colorful buses known as tap-taps to disembark their passengers.
Market Vendors Face Impossible Choices
Fedline Jean-Pierre, a 35-year-old mother of a 7-year-old boy, said she was considering raising the prices of carrots, tomatoes and other produce she sells at an outdoor market in Port-au-Prince. "People are not buying now because they don't have money," she said, adding that she likely would have no choice but to increase prices to survive. "I have a child to feed."
Jean-Pierre and her son have lived for two years in a cramped and unsanitary shelter among the record 1.4 million Haitians displaced by gang violence in recent years. "The government doesn't do anything for me," she said. "Gas is up now, meaning everything will go up."
Street vendor Maxime Poulard said he buys charcoal from suppliers to resell at a higher price. He said he occasionally sells two bags of charcoal a day, but thinks he soon will only be able to afford to buy half a bag to resell. "Traveling is expensive; eating is expensive; everything is expensive," he said. "I'm not sure if I will be able to hold on much more."
Marc Jean-Louis, a 29-year-old tap-tap driver, said passengers are increasingly bartering fares, but he cannot afford to offer discounts. "All the money is going toward gas," he said, calling on the government to reduce prices "so that everyone can breathe."
Aid Disrupted
Rumen said the World Food Program has been unable to reach 60,000 people in Haiti's central region who are awaiting aid, and that a powerful gang recently attacked the area, killing more than 70 people, according to the United Nations. "We're going to have more needs and less resources," he warned.
Allen Joseph, program manager for Mercy Corps in Haiti, said rising oil prices are crushing the country's fragile economy. "The families already spending most of their income on food will face impossible tradeoffs," he said. He warned the increase will affect access to basic services, including potable water, and said, "This is not an abstract inflation. It will directly impact survival."
An increase in food prices will worsen hunger in a country where gangs easily recruit children whose families need food and money.
Why This Matters:
Haiti's fuel-price shock illustrates how government pricing decisions intersect with global market forces and domestic security failures to devastate the most vulnerable. With 90% of the capital controlled by gangs and the economy contracting for seven consecutive years, the state lacks both the capacity to secure supply routes and the fiscal resources to cushion households from external price shocks. The result is a cascade of market failures: transportation costs double, aid organizations cannot reach beneficiaries, and families selling produce or charcoal face collapsing demand while their own input costs soar. Nearly half the population already faces acute food insecurity, and the World Food Program warns that years of humanitarian investment could be erased by forces beyond local control. The crisis underscores the limits of aid-dependent strategies in the absence of functioning governance, rule of law, and secure markets—conditions that no amount of external assistance can substitute for indefinitely.