UN appeals for 46.4 bln USD to provide 2024 global humanitarian aid

GENEVA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Office for the United Nations Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Monday appealed for 46.4 billion U.S. dollars to provide vital assistance and protection to 180.5 million people from 72 countries facing the devastating impact of armed conflicts, climate emergencies and economic collapse.

According to OCHA's Global Humanitarian Overview, the Middle East and North African region require 13.9 billion dollars, the largest total for any region in 2024 and accounting for 30 percent of the total.

East and Southern Africa requires 10.9 billion dollars, while West and Central Africa calls for 8.3 billion dollars. Asia and the Pacific will require 5.5 billion dollars, Eastern Europe 4.1 billion dollars, and Latin America and the Caribbean 3.6 billion dollars.

According to the number of people in need and the depth of their need, the five largest country appeals in the OCHA overview include Syria calling for 4.4 billion dollars, Ukraine 3.1 billion dollars, Afghanistan 3 billion dollars, Ethiopia 2.9 billion dollars and Yemen 2.8 billion dollars.

Rising global conflicts, notably in Sudan and between Israel and Gaza in 2023, have led to a dramatic increase in civilian casualties, the OCHA overview said.

OCHA figures also showed that the scale of forced displacement across the world has doubled in the past decade, affecting more than 1 in 73 people worldwide. Conflict and climate disasters remained the main causes of such displacement.

Internal displacement reached a record 71.1 million at the end of 2022, a 20 percent increase from the previous year. The number of refugees is also at a record high of 36.4 million, with over half from Afghanistan, Syria and Ukraine.

"Almost one in five children worldwide is now living in or fleeing from conflict zones," Martin Griffiths, UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, highlighted.

According to the OCHA figure, a total of 258 million people across 58 countries face acute food insecurity, a consequence of armed conflict, economic shocks, climate extremes, poverty and inequality. Among them, 45 million children under five are at risk of wasting, with 13.6 million experiencing severe wasting, putting them in danger of death.

Griffiths said that without collective global efforts, the food security situation is expected to worsen in 2024, citing Burkina Faso, Mali, the occupied palestinian territory, South Sudan and Sudan as areas of utmost concern.

He also said that 2023 is worrisome for humanitarian efforts because it's likely the first time since 2010 that funding for humanitarian aid will go down instead of up.

In 2023, levels of displacement, acute food insecurity, and malnutrition reached historically high levels but by Nov. 24 of 2023, the humanitarian system received around 20 billion dollars, just 35 percent of the 57 billion dollars appealed in the Global Humanitarian Overview 2023.

The Global Humanitarian Overview is a comprehensive assessment of global humanitarian needs. It provides a snapshot of current and future trends in humanitarian action for large-scale resource mobilization.