The UN launched a humanitarian appeal on Wednesday for $47.4 billion to help 190 million people next year in a world battered by conflict and climate change.
“The world is on fire,” UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said when presenting the appeal in Geneva, explaining that “the combination of conflict, the climate crisis and inequality has created a perfect disaster. “We are facing a multiple crisis on a global scale and it is the most vulnerable people who are paying the price,” he noted.
The UN was able to help 116 million people around the world last year.
Priorities to establish
It estimates that some 305 million people will need humanitarian aid next year, but the requested $47.4 billion – slightly less than requested a year ago – aims to provide assistance to just 190 millions of them.
Newly appointed Tom Fletcher said it would have been easier for him to ask for a record amount like in recent years. But he explained the importance of “establishing priorities in the face of lack of funding” even if they are “difficult choices”. As of November, the UN had received only 43% of the nearly $50 billion requested for 2024.
Underfunded system
The consequences of underfinancing humanitarian appeals are “severe”, laments the organization: in 2024, food aid has been reduced by 80% in Syria, while aid for water and sanitation had to be reduced in Yemen while the country is affected by cholera.
“The humanitarian system today is overwhelmed, underfunded and literally under attack,” lamented Tom Fletcher. “We need a surge of global solidarity” in the face of “donor fatigue,” he said.
Deadly year for humanitarians
But the most significant obstacle to assistance and protection of people in armed conflicts is the widespread violation of international humanitarian law, the UN warns.
With still weeks to go before it ends, 2024 is already seen as the deadliest year for aid workers, with the death toll surpassing 2023’s 280 deaths.
2025 even worse
Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Lebanon, Syria… 2024 was “one of the most brutal years in recent history” for civilians caught up in conflicts according to the UN, and “if no urgent measures is taken, the year 2025 could be even worse.”
By mid-2024, nearly 123 million people had been forcibly displaced by conflict and violence, the twelfth consecutive annual increase. At the same time, climate-related disasters are ravaging regions, causing massive population displacements.
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