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UN’s humanitarian efforts this year face $5 billion shortfall

UN’s humanitarian efforts this year face $5 billion shortfall

Thousands of Somali refugees, like these, continue to arrive in Kenya
More than halfway through 2009, United Nations agencies and their humanitarian partners face a nearly $5 billion gap in funding to respond to the most severe crises, with the UN’s top relief official warning today that the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people have been hardest hit by the global recession.

Of the $9.5 billion appealed for to cover activities for 2009, less than half has been received to date, leaving a $4.8 billion gap, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

“It is clear that the global recession puts pressure on the aid budgets of all donor governments, but of course it puts immeasurably more pressure on crisis-stricken people in poor countries,” said Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes.

Only a fraction of the money committed by governments to private financial institutions in the midst of the economic turmoil is needed to ensure that those in need are “getting the best available protection and assistance on time,” he added.

Since the start of the year, the Consolidated and Flash Appeals have been revised upward by $1.5 billion due to deteriorating humanitarian situations in some areas.

For example, acute food insecurity and the influx of refugees from neighbouring Somalia has driven up funding requirements for Kenya up by almost $200 million, while the Israeli military operation in Gaza earlier this year has caused needs to increase there by over $300 million.

Despite the end of more than two decades of fighting between the Government and separatist Tamils in Sri Lanka, humanitarian requirements have surged by more than $100 million due to the needs of the 285,000 people uprooted by violence.

The UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) – which seeks to speed up assistance to those suffering from natural and man-made disasters as well as support critically under-funded emergencies – has allocated more than $150 million to 18 appeals.

Mr. Holmes, who also serves as UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, today announced the allocation of a further $55 million for 11 protracted emergency situations in countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Zimbabwe, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and Ethiopia.