First wave of Jamaican security personnel headed to Haiti

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00:00Six months after pledging support to the Kenyan-led mission in Haiti, Jamaica is sending a first

00:05wave of troops. The Jamaican president announced that only 24 military and police personnel

00:10would land in Haiti on Thursday and lay the groundwork for further deployments.

00:15Haiti is the example of what could happen if states do not take the problem seriously

00:27and put in place the measures and resources necessary to bring the problem under control.

00:35In March, Jamaica formally pledged 200 personnel for the UN-backed mission, but the deployment

00:40has faced setbacks. It's led by Kenya, which so far has sent 400 police officers out of

00:46a total pledge of 1,000. Working with Haitian police, the Kenyan officers are working towards

00:51taking back key sites that have fallen under the control of gangs, including the airport

00:56and seaports. But almost three months into the mission, the security situation has little

01:01improved. Gangs are in control of 80% of the capital, with violence having spread to other

01:07areas across the country. The UN says more than 3,000 people have been killed from January

01:12to May, and the crisis has left more than half a million people homeless.

01:17Part of the problem is funding. The international mission is expected to cost around $600 million

01:22per year, but only $85 million have been pledged by countries so far. On a visit to Haiti last

01:28week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged other countries to provide more financial

01:33support and called for transitional authorities to move quickly towards democratic elections.

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