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	Emergency aid needs are going unmet in neglected hotspots around the globe by New Humanitarian, CARE, agencies   As the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine continue to dominate headlines going into 2024, it’s important to remember the many other crises that are too easily forgotten by the media and neglected by aid donors – often just because of their complexity or their relative lack of geopolitical importance.   Needs in the “uninhabitable” Gaza Strip are indescribably high, as Israel’s operations to destroy Hamas enter a fourth month, the death toll nears 23,000, and 85% of the population of 2.3 million – who are unable to leave the territory – remain displaced by the bombardment and ground invasion. Tens of thousands of Palestinians are sick or wounded but barely any hospitals are functioning, and Israel’s all-out siege is preventing the entry of all but a trickle of humanitarian supplies, while it cuts off water, food, fuel, and electricity. Remarks from far-right Israeli ministers have fuelled accusations of ethnic cleansing and genocide. Millions also face displacement and the constant threat of bombardment in Ukraine, where Russia’s invasion is far from over even as international attention wanes.   But the people of Gaza and Ukraine are not alone in their suffering.   According to the latest UN figures, nearly 300 million people in 72 countries will require humanitarian assistance and protection this year. Globally, response plans in 2023 were less than 40% funded, while the donor outlook is even gloomier for the coming year as the UN scales back its ambitions.   As 2024 begins, tens of millions of affected people in the settings below are already in extreme hunger or extreme danger, while access restraints or funding limitations mean many can’t be reached by an international emergency response system that is overwhelmed and more intently focused elsewhere.   Sudan: Alleged ethnic cleansing and the world’s largest internal displacement crisis   Numbers: 25 million people (more than half the population) need humanitarian assistance. More than 7 million people displaced.   The conflict that broke out in April between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has created the world’s biggest internal displacement crisis. More than 7 million people have left their homes, including 1.5 million who have escaped abroad. Khartoum has been devastated and the RSF is accused of ethnic cleansing and genocide crimes in Darfur. Mediation efforts have failed and aid agencies face one of the world's hardest operational environments on top of limited funding.   Sudanese mutual aid groups are the main humanitarian responders, but they’ve received scant support from international donors and several have had to pause their work. Fears that Sudan is facing a Libya-style split between an RSF-held west and an army-held north and east are giving way to concerns that the RSF – which is on a diplomatic charm offensive as it consolidates its military upper hand – is seeking total power.   Myanmar: Anti-junta gains bring both hope and fear   Numbers: 2.5 million displaced, including more than 660,000 since late October 2023 alone. The 2023 response plan only one third funded.   For the first time since the military-led government took total power in February 2021 – arresting Aung San Suu Kyi, whose party had won a landslide election victory months earlier – dozens of armed groups are uniting to take on the junta and winning. While some see the gains by these groups, which number upwards of 250 overall, as a sign that the junta is finally on the backfoot and hope it might one day lead to its downfall, others fear the military’s violent response will only lead to soaring humanitarian needs in a country that already receives very little global attention.   In the short-term, the latter is already unfolding as more than 660,000 people have been newly displaced since fighting intensified in late October. As the junta has long restricted access for international aid groups, calls are growing for local aid groups to be given more support.   Haiti: Will foreign intervention make things better or worse?   Numbers: More than half of Haiti’s population – some 5.2 million people – need humanitarian assistance and protection. More than 4,000 people were killed by gang violence in 2023, an 80% increase on 2022. Rapes and gender-based violence are at unprecedented levels.   Gang violence has put a chokehold on Haiti since the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. As murders and rapes continue to soar in the capital – and spread into other parts of the Caribbean nation – a UN-backed force has been delayed by legal challenges in Kenya but could arrive later this year to try to quell the violence.   But Haiti has no elected representatives, and many fear that any foreign armed force that manages to rein in the gangs will continue to prop up Haiti’s corrupt political and financial elites. Meanwhile, humanitarian needs are soaring, in a country where aid access is extremely hard to negotiate. Some 200,000 people have been displaced – a situation that has worsened since 115,000 Haitians were deported from other countries in 2023.   Some 3.3 million Haitians lack access to safe water, and in some districts of the capital almost everyone is suffering from severe hunger and only getting one meal – or less – a day.   West African Sahel: Insurgencies worsen under junta rule   Numbers: 8.8 million people need assistance in Mali, nearly 400,000 internally displaced. 3.7 million people need assistance in Burkina Faso, over 2 million internally displaced. 4.3 million people need assistance in Niger; around 335,000 internally displaced.   Jihadist insurgencies and political instability are worsening in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, three neighbouring Sahelian countries. Military leaders seized power in Niger last year, meaning juntas now rule across the region. They enjoy significant local support but are diplomatically isolated. Jihadist attacks continued in Niger after the coup, and sanctions imposed on the country by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are causing nationwide hardship.   Burkina Faso’s junta has halted efforts to dialogue with jihadists in favour of a “total war”, and the insurgents are imposing sieges on communities supportive of the army. Meanwhile, in Mali, the junta has booted out a decade-long UN peacekeeping mission and kickstarted a dangerous new war with the Tuareg-dominated armed groups that operate in the north.   The Horn of Africa: Floods, conflict, and Red Sea rivalry   Numbers: 49 million (in the Greater Horn of Africa region) experiencing acute food insecurity. Over 19 million (in the Greater Horn of Africa region) displaced by conflict, drought, and flooding.   After a record drought, large parts of the Horn of Africa have faced catastrophic recent flooding. Some 2 million people have been displaced as entire villages were wiped out by the El Niño-induced rains. Conflicts are also metastasising across the region. The peace deal between Ethiopia’s government and the Tigray region has held for over a year, but stumbling blocks remain and fighting has flared in Amhara and Oromia.   Somalia’s offensive against al-Shabab appears to have stalled after some early gains, while regional efforts to halt Sudan’s war are having limited impact. Red Sea rivalries are heating up too: Landlocked Ethiopia’s port ambitions have led to a deal with coastal Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. Mogadishu, which views the area as part of its territory, has symbolically nullified the agreement and referred to it as an “act of aggression” that violates its sovereignty.   The Democratic Republic of the Congo: Record displacement amid a peacekeeper pullout   Numbers: Nearly 7 million internally displaced. Over 25 million with crisis levels of food insecurity.   The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s displacement crisis hit a record 6.9 million last year, and things are already off to a turbulent start in 2024. President Felix Tshisekedi was declared the landslide winner of a December election, but opposition candidates are demanding a re-run, citing widespread irregularities. A long-standing UN peacekeeping mission is, meanwhile, accelerating its drawdown, even as the security situation deteriorates.   Fighting has been especially intense in the east between the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group and the Congolese army, which is supported by local militias and foreign mercenaries. Civilians are also facing alarming security situations in the northeastern Ituri region and across the long-suffering Kivus.   Syria: The downward slide continues as attention wanes   Numbers: 15.3 million in need of aid before the February earthquakes, 120,000 displaced by violence since October, adding to the “largest displacement crisis in the world”.   At the start of 2023, humanitarian needs were already at a record high in Syria, due to economic collapse, climate change, and a long unresolved war.   By the end of the year, things were much worse. A series of massive earthquakes hit southeastern Türkiye and northern Syria in early February, killing more than 4,500 people in Syria (as well as more than 50,000 in Türkiye), destroying or damaging tens of thousands of homes, and impacting millions in a part of the country where most were already in crisis. In July, the UN Security Council failed to renew a resolution that allows aid across the Türkiye-Syria border, meaning access to this rebel-held part of the country now depends on the permission of President Bashar al-Assad.   In October, the Syrian government and its Russian allies began bombing targets in Idlib, in a major escalation that has killed civilians and forced 120,000 to flee their homes. Add to that a cholera outbreak and humanitarian funding so low the World Food Programme says it will stop its general food assistance in January 2024, and the outlook is more than concerning.   Yemen: Houthi attacks in Red Sea threaten an elusive peace   Numbers: 21.6 million people in need of aid. Funding for UN-coordinated aid is declining: 62% in 2021, 53% in 2022, 38% 2023.   For nearly two years, Yemen’s Houthi rebels and the government of Saudi Arabia – which supports the internationally recognised government of Yemen – have been discussing an end to the conflict. These back-channel talks have borne some fruit, but not peace, and the Houthis’ attempts to join the fray in the Israel-Hamas war by attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea have the potential to change the dynamics once again.   Meanwhile, the country’s massive humanitarian crisis rattles on: Yemen is facing another rapidly spreading cholera outbreak, and the WFP announced in late 2023 that it would be pausing its general food assistance in Houthi-run north Yemen due to low funding and a breakdown in negotiations with authorities on who should get aid. NGOs working in the country, which has a long-running hunger problem, warn that the suspension will “exacerbate the already critical humanitarian situation, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable populations, including children, pregnant women, and the elderly”.   Venezuela: Dimming hopes of a 2024 detente   Numbers: 7.1 million migrants worldwide; nearly 6 million in Latin America, of whom over 5 million need aid. 7.7 million people in need of assistance within Venezuela.   President Nicolas Maduro’s decision in December to annex Guyana’s oil-rich Essequibo region was only the latest in a string of events towards the backend of 2023 that dampened hopes of an end to the political, humanitarian, and economic crisis that has driven more than 7 million Venezuelans to migrate since 2015, and left the remaining 28.7 million facing hyperinflation, shattered healthcare services, and hunger. Maduro’s government had signed an October deal with the opposition to pave the way for free and monitored 2024 elections – this was to include the US lifting sanctions over Venezuela’s once-mighty oil industry.   A few days later, the UN agreed to manage a trust fund to unfreeze sanctioned Venezuela assets abroad to address humanitarian needs. But as the opposition gained strength, Maduro sought to reassert his power, arresting key leaders. Along with the Essequibo move, this risks the reimposition of US sanctions, destabilising the region, and exacerbating, once again, Venezuela’s massive humanitarian needs.   Afghanistan: The engagement conundrum   Numbers: 23.7 million people in need of assistance. 6.3 million experiencing long-term displacement. 3.7 million children out of school, including 2.2 million girls.   Billed in 2023 (before Gaza erupted) by the UN as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, Afghanistan has dropped off the international media radar since the Taliban took back power in August 2021. Although conflict-related displacement since the withdrawal of Western forces has drastically reduced, the country is still grappling with the effects of four decades of war, growing climate shocks, and an Islamic Emirate government that continues to be accused of rights abuses while being sanctioned and ostracised by most of the international community. Some are wondering how to bring the Taliban in from the cold, especially in light of a devastating series of earthquakes in Herat in October, and after neighbouring Pakistan’s recent expulsions of hundreds of thousands of Afghans.   Though discussions have picked up, critics of engagement want to see more progress on women’s rights before issues like withheld diplomatic recognition, frozen Afghan central bank reserves, and sanctions on Taliban leaders are reconsidered.   http://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/2024/01/08/why-these-10-humanitarian-crises-demand-your-attention-now http://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/2024/01/02/trends-driving-humanitarian-need-2024-and-what-do-about-them http://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/events/charting-course-navigating-2024s-humanitarian-landscape http://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/feature/2024/01/03/editors-picks-stories-2024   Dec. 2023   Ten humanitarian crises that didn’t make headlines in 2023. (CARE International)   In 2023, there were 273,279 online articles worldwide about the new Barbie movie, but only 1,049 articles about the humanitarian crisis in Angola. Yet, more than seven million people have been affected by droughts, floods, and hunger in the Southern African country.   Angola is once again number one among the top ten forgotten humanitarian crises that received the least media attention last year. For the eighth time, the humanitarian organization CARE is publishing its "Breaking the Silence" report to draw attention to these forgotten crises.   All ten forgotten crises are in Africa. In Zambia, second on the list, 1.35 million people are affected by hunger. Zambia is particularly affected by the consequences of climate change. While there were over one quarter of a million articles about the new iPhone 15, there were just 1,371 online articles in 2023 about the crisis in Zambia.   Burundi, third on the list, also regularly experiences climate related disasters, such as flooding. Almost 70,000 people have been displaced as a result. Malnutrition is a major problem in Burundi, especially among children.   "According to the United Nations, around 300 million people worldwide will need humanitarian aid in 2024 - almost half of them in Africa."   "We must not forget that hunger is almost always man-made. Conflicts, economic shocks, extreme weather, poverty, and inequality are key drivers. To save lives, we need more attention and sufficient funding for humanitarian aid", said Deepmala Mahla, Global Humanitarian Director of CARE.   Humanitarian crises that did not make the headlines in 2023:   Angola – 7.3 million people with humanitarian needs. Zambia – 1.35 million people have too little to eat. Burundi – 5.6 million children suffer from chronic malnutrition. Senegal – 1.4 million people affected by food insecurity. Mauritania – One in four people live in poverty. Central African Republic – Sixth highest child mortality rate in the world. Cameroon – One in six people with humanitarian needs. Burkina Faso – 8.8 million people live below the poverty line. Uganda – Maternal mortality rate is 284 per 100,000 live births. Zimbabwe – Almost 8 million people affected by extreme poverty.   http://www.care-international.org/resources/breaking-silence-ten-humanitarian-crises-didnt-make-headlines-2023 http://www.dw.com/en/hunger-drought-child-mortality-in-africa-fall-out-of-focus/a-67965128 http://www.msf.org/year-pictures-2023 http://www.icrc.org/en/document/icrc-year-pictures-2023-bringing-hope-in-increasingly-polarized-world http://www.actionagainsthunger.org/story/year-in-photos-2023/
	Necessary support from the international community is not keeping pace with humanitarian needs by UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs, agencies   Dec. 2023 (OCHA)   Conflicts, climate emergencies and collapsing economies are wreaking havoc in communities around the world. Nearly 181 million people in 72 countries are targeted to receive humanitarian aid and protection next year.   128 million people received life-saving assistance in 2023, but a growing funding gap meant that support was cut back and millions of people were not reached.   On behalf of more than 1,900 humanitarian partners worldwide, the United Nations today launched its global appeal for 2024, calling for US$46.4 billion to help 180.5 million people with life-saving assistance and protection.   Armed conflicts, the climate emergency and collapsing economies are taking a devastating toll on the most vulnerable communities on all continents, resulting in catastrophic hunger, massive displacement and disease outbreaks.   One child in every five lives in, or has fled from, conflict zones in 2023. Some 258 million people face acute hunger. One in 73 people worldwide is displaced – a doubling in 10 years. And disease outbreaks are causing preventable deaths in all corners of the world.   “Humanitarians are saving lives, fighting hunger, protecting children, pushing back epidemics, and providing shelter and sanitation in many of the world’s most inhumane contexts. But the necessary support from the international community is not keeping pace with the needs,” said Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.   “We thank all donors for their contributions this year - but it was just a third of what was needed. If we cannot provide more help in 2024, people will pay for it with their lives.”   Funding shortfalls in 2023 meant that humanitarian organizations reached less than two thirds of the people they aimed to assist.   The consequences are tragic: In Afghanistan, 10 million people lost access to food assistance between May and November. In Myanmar, more than half a million people were left in inadequate living conditions. In Yemen, more than 80 per cent of people targeted for assistance do not have proper water and sanitation. And in Nigeria, only 2 per cent of the women expecting sexual and reproductive health services and gender-based violence prevention received it.   Aid organizations have addressed this needs-and-resources gap in their 2024 response plans, which will have a more disciplined focus on the most urgent needs and will target fewer people: nearly 181 million next year compared to 245 million at the end of 2023. Organizations are also appealing for less money: $46.4 billion for 2024 compared to $56.7 billion at the end of the 2023 global appeal.   However, the ambition to reach all people in need has not changed, and the call to donors to fully fund all the response plans is as urgent as ever.   http://humanitarianaction.info/document/global-humanitarian-overview-2024/   Dec. 2023   Working with partners, UNICEF aims to reach 94 million children with life-saving assistance.   Across the globe, children and families are facing unprecedented humanitarian crises. Around 300 million people are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance and protection as devastating earthquakes, climate-related disasters, disease outbreaks and new and surging conflicts have left tens of millions of children and their families reeling.   But despite the record needs, the situation isn’t hopeless. We know how to reach the children at greatest risk. Decisive and timely humanitarian action combined with flexible funding and close work with local partners can save children’s lives now, while also sowing the seeds of future development.   Through its 2024 Humanitarian Action for Children appeal, UNICEF is appealing for $9.3 billion to reach 94 million children with life-saving assistance – whenever and wherever it is needed.   “Millions of children continue to be caught in humanitarian crises that are growing in complexity and scale, and that are increasingly stretching our resources to respond,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.   The unpredictability, volatility, and protracted nature of emergencies today is taking a heavy toll on children and families. From earthquakes in Afghanistan, Syria and Turkiye, to conflict and violence in Ukraine, Sudan, the State of Palestine and Haiti, to massive displacement in Democratic Republic of the Congo, emergencies can strike or escalate with little or no warning.   In conflict zones, children endure the harsh realities of violence and displacement, facing the daily threats of physical harm, emotional trauma, and the disruption of their education and essential services. At the same time, children in areas affected by violence contend with the pervasive impact on their well-being, grappling with the psychological toll of instability, and the heightened risk of exploitation and abuse.   "Around the world, war continues to upend the lives of children. We estimate that today, 460 million children are living in, or fleeing from conflict zones. And wherever violence occurs – in places like Burkina Faso, Haiti, Sudan – children suffer first, and they suffer most.   "Many children living in areas affected by conflict are injured or killed. They may lose family members or friends. With many displaced multiple times, risking separation from their families, losing critical years of education, and fraying ties to their communities. I have seen firsthand too much of the horrible toll that conflict exacts on children.   Climate change is worsening the scale and intensity of emergencies. Wreaking havoc on young lives by causing severe droughts, heatwaves and more intense storms. In regions struggling with its impacts, children bear the brunt of environmental challenges, jeopardizing their health, creating food and water insecurity.   Food insecurity like that experienced in the Horn of Africa. Or the 2.4 million children in South Sudan and the central Sahel who suffered from severe wasting in 2023 because of drought linked to climate change.   It’s critical that UNICEF and local partners have support, so that children living through an emergency can have the life-saving aid and protection they need, where and when they need it. Timely and flexible funding can help save lives today, while also allowing UNICEF and partners to respond effectively to new and emerging risks before it’s too late or even more costly.   The 2024 appeal includes support for major crises in Afghanistan, Syrian Refugees, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ukraine. Critically underfunded emergencies include Burkina Faso, Myanmar, Haiti, Ethiopia, Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan and Bangladesh.   “UNICEF and partners are committed to providing a comprehensive response to the many humanitarian crises affecting children, including the impacts of conflicts, climate change and natural disasters,” said Russell. “Children should not be paying with their lives and their futures. They need continued access to essential services, like health care, safe water, basic sanitation and education".   "Working together through principled humanitarian action, we can reach the most vulnerable children, offering them the support they need for a brighter future".   http://www.unicef.org/emergencies/launch-2024-humanitarian-appeal   World Health Organization: Health Emergency Appeal 2024   In 2024, 300 million people will require humanitarian assistance and protection, with an estimated 166 million people requiring health assistance. Conflict and the climate crisis have affected healthcare and deepened threats around the world, and at least five WHO regions are now impacted by worsening conflict and security including the desperate situations in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine. For those facing emergencies, disruptions to health services often mean the difference between life and death.   The Health Emergency Appeal will support WHO in responding to ongoing and new emergencies around the world, and protect the health of the most vulnerable populations in 41 emergencies around the globe in 2024.   The appeal covers the emergencies that demand the highest level of response from WHO, with the aim to reach over 87 million people. It is being issued in a context of complex emergencies cutting across crises of conflict, climate change and economic instability, which continue to fuel displacement, hunger, and inequality.   “For those facing emergencies, disruptions to essential health services often mean the difference between life and death. Health care saves lives”, said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.   Support in 2024 will enable life-saving health care, distribution of critical health supplies and equipment, along with maintenance of essential health services to ensure continuous care.   In every humanitarian crisis, people are at risk of trauma, disease and death. Women, children, older people and people with pre-existing medical conditions are disproportionately affected by humanitarian emergencies.   Access to health-care services can mean the difference between life and death – enabling mothers to give birth safely, protecting children against infectious diseases, treating malnutrition and ensuring those with chronic diseases continue to receive vital treatment.   Failing to protect health in humanitarian emergencies not only puts lives at immediate risk, it also feeds a cycle of poverty, threatening progress for health, education, nutrition and livelihoods.   http://www.who.int/emergencies/funding/health-emergency-appeals/2024 http://www.unocha.org/news/un-relief-chief-warns-global-health-under-threat-never Visit the related web page
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