Updated data in GHA’s 43 country profiles
The GHA team has published updated data in 43 humanitarian country profiles. These updates came at the end of 2011, a year which saw the unfolding of large-scale humanitarian crises: the food security crisis in the Horn of Africa following extended drought, the results of political turmoil in the shape…
Read MoreContinued financial support for the CERF in 2012
At the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF)’s sixth high-level conference on 15 December in New York, donors pledged a record high for 2012, reaffirming their support for the global humanitarian pooled fund. So far a total of 47 donors have promised US$375 million for 2012, an increase of 4.7%…
Read MoreThe Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium – a model to be replicated?
Nepal has undoubtedly experienced its fair share of natural hazards over the last century, some of which recur year on year such as floods and landslides and others which have struck less frequently but have the potential to cause more devastation, as is the case with earthquakes. This makes…
Read MoreRising to the challenge? Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, Busan, South Korea
The Fourth High Level Forum (HLF) on Aid Effectiveness (29 November – 1 December) is faced with the significant challenge of building upon agreements from HLFs, in Rome, Paris and Accra that have (at best) a variable record of delivering real results (OECD 2011 Survey on Monitoring the Paris Declaration)….
Read MoreThe inadequacy of emergency preparedness
The pressure on the humanitarian system appears to be growing. Aid from governments reached US$12.4 billion in 2010, the highest figure on record. At the same time UN appeals in 2010 reached their highest ever figure of US$11.2 billion, double what it was in 2006, and for the first time…
Read MoreConférence Nationale Humanitaire: France
I was really pleased to be able to take part in France’s Conférence nationale humanitaire (CNH) at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Paris last Wednesday 16 November – an event that gathered senior representatives of both French and EU administrations, NGOs, CSOs and the UN to discuss major…
Read MoreLibya crisis #4: who are the top donors?
Donors have contributed US$274 million to the UN regional flash appeal for Libya, meeting 82.1% of the US$333 million (revised) requirement. (As highlighted in our first three updates, the initial appeal requirement was for US$160.3 million, revised upwards to US$407.8 million and now stands at US$333 million). Latest information published…
Read MoreThailand’s worst floods in 50 years; international response and preparing for future disasters
Mass flooding in Thailand is reported to be directly affecting over 2.5 million people and so far has resulted in over 350 fatalities (Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, Thailand). Total damages have now been estimated by economists to be in the region of US$9.7 billion (Human development forum foundation…
Read MoreShould the UK’s overseas development budget be cut?
In a time of economic difficulty and domestic social tension, the overseas development budget is a very easy target. UK citizens can rightly question why their taxes should be used for development in other (and geographically distant) countries, while domestically more public spending is needed to improve social safety nets…
Read MoreDomestic response to humanitarian crises: Uganda trudges on
Local approaches in responding to humanitarian crises in Uganda have evolved remarkably over the years, with government, the local private sector, individuals and civil society responses to disasters and emergencies increasingly recognised by the media and traditional international humanitarian agencies. The domestic initiative has especially grown with the expansion of…
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