Humanitarian system 'stretched to its limits' says new research
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Version 0 of 1. The humanitarian system has been stretched to its limits with aid agencies unable to support people living in areas blighted by complex conflicts in countries like Syria and Central African Republic, according to a new report examining the sector. The State of the Humanitarian System, which is published every three years and produced by Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance in Humanitarian Action (Alnap), reveals that agencies are struggling to reach people in many of the world’s trouble spots. Researchers found there were fewer humanitarian emergencies in the three years leading up to 2015 compared to previous years, but significantly more people were targeted for assistance; 78% more than 2007-8 levels. With countries like Mali, South Sudan and Central African Republic all seeing fresh violence in the years leading up to 2015, humanitarian organisations found it harder to reach communities in conflict-ridden areas. Related: Addressing humanitarian crisis is crucial to achieving the sustainable development goals A lack of funding, technical capacity, as well as problems recruiting staff were cited as reasons for inadequate provision for those in hard to reach communities. In Central African Republic, the report notes that humanitarian organisations scaled back activities in the country in the autumn of 2013 despite an increase in needs in the country. A lack of interest from donors, as well as problems recruiting French-speaking staff to work in the region were blamed for the difficulties. In Mali too, the report notes that attempts to deliver aid to the north of the country were hampered by fighting in the region. The report notes that it is virtually impossible to get solid evidence on aid-delivery in Syria due to the nature of the conflict. It says: “Getting solid information on the aid picture for the whole of Syria has been extremely difficult, and as a result the humanitarian community is unable to determine if the aid getting through is the most relevant and appropriate to people’s needs. Until 2014 there was no information on needs for Syria as a whole.” Getting solid information on the aid picture for the whole of Syria has been extremely difficult By contrast, the report praises aid agencies for their ability to meet the needs of communities affected by natural disasters and other short-term events. In the Philippines, researchers found that the international response to Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, backed up by $1bn in overseas money, had been “timely and met the critical objectives of providing food, water and shelter and preventing significant post-event mortality and morbidity”. Alnap researchers also found that aid efforts were being hampered by a lack of local community involvement in humanitarian operations. With 2,500 aid workers and recipients included in the survey, the majority of recipients felt they did not play a big enough role in delivering aid to their communities, with 70% of funding going directly to UN agencies and the Red Cross/Red Crescent. The report comes a few months after the UN announced it had increased its annual appeal for international aid by 500% in a decade, with $20bn requested in 2015 to combat multiple crises. With international crises becoming protracted, and refugees finding themselves displaced for longer periods, the UN has also warned that many of its aid projects are in urgent need of cash. It reports that humanitarian appeals are underfunded by 40%. Related: UN's aid appeal up 500% in a decade as multiple crises become the 'new norm' “There are more Syrians under UNHCR’s care today than any other nationality on earth. Yet by the end of 2014, only 54% of the money needed to assist refugees outside Syria had been raised. Inside Syria, humanitarian organisations received even less,” said Melissa Fleming, from the UNHCR, in June. John Mitchell, the director of Alnap, said that the humanitarian system is “failing to protect people in conflict situations” and failing to give these people “appropriate assistance”. “We’ve seen fewer emergencies in the last three years, but they have been more severe and conflict-related,” he explained. “I would much rather be waiting for aid in a typhoon hit country than I would in Central African Republic.” Join our community of development professionals and humanitarians. Follow @GuardianGDP on Twitter. |