An end to wars in Ukraine or the Gaza Strip; forgotten conflicts Syria, Niger, Afghanistan, Mali or West Sahara; a climate emergency that multiplies the severity of natural disasters and the exodus of populations. A series of crises that have increased the need for humanitarian assistance around the world and resulted in a widening gap between these needs and the assistance provided by the international community.

Donors are being sought in a year that is ending with a record deficit. This is the main conclusion of the report. “Humanitarian Action 2022-2023: The Climate Emergency Exacerbates Other Crises” signed by the Institute for Conflict Research and Humanitarian Action (IECAH) and Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and presented this Monday.

“While funding to respond to humanitarian crises has reached an unprecedented level of nearly US$47 billion., the scale of appeals and humanitarian assistance has reached unprecedented levels. We are therefore witnessing a panorama that shows us that the system is under enormous pressure to keep up with ever-increasing demands,” he warns. Francisco ReyCo-Director of IECAH.

Only 58% of global appeals were reached, with about a third receiving 50% or less of the funding requested.

The period analyzed in the report is marked by the continuation of the war in Ukraine; the increase in the number and complexity of violent conflicts internationally, most recently and most recently: the Gaza War; and the climate crisis, which is exacerbating and increasing the destructive power of climate events and natural disasters. Funding needed to respond to humanitarian needs around the world reached record levels in 2022, and preliminary data for 2023 suggests it could be surpassed this year.

And this despite the fact that international humanitarian assistance increased by $10 billion (27%). The scale of the need has pushed the humanitarian funding gap to a record high of $22.1 billion (just over €20 billion). Only 58% of appeals submitted worldwide were reached, with about a third receiving 50% or less of the funding requested.

Selective aid led by Ukraine

The report emphasizes that aid was again selective and dependent on the country and the crisis. Ten crises account for almost two-thirds of all international humanitarian assistance, with Ukraine main recipient ($4.4 billion) and Afghanistanin the midst of the Taliban’s return to power, second with 3.9 billion.

Its authors regret that chronic crises force many into oblivion; or the loss of weight of the UN caused by the lack of will of some of its most powerful members as the legitimate representative of the international community and its ability to solve current problems.

The war in the Gaza Strip and the impotence of the UN are the latest and most dramatic evidence of the dysfunctional imbalance.

“We are seeing a dynamic whereby the focus on the crisis (yesterday it was Ukraine, now the Gaza Strip) ends up neglecting the rest, both in diplomatic efforts to resolve them and in the amount of resources deployed to help victims. says Jesus A. Nunez, Co-Director of IECAH. “The Gaza war and the impotence of the UN are the latest and most dramatic evidence of the dysfunctional imbalance of the United Nations, which needs to update its structure, reform its decision-making processes and provide itself with the necessary tools to effectively carry out its many tasks,” he adds.

Growing need

​In 2022, the demand for humanitarian assistance has increased more than ever. The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance has exceeded 406 million in 82 countries. Over the past decade, the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance may have quadrupled.

The total number of internally displaced persons in 2022 reached 107.5 million people.. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region hosting the largest number of displaced people, with almost half of the displaced living in just 10 countries, 7 of which fall into the low-income category. Accelerating climate impacts are increasingly having a greater impact on humanitarian needs and internal and cross-border movements.

The acute problem of food insecurity has continued to grow, with more than 265 million people in 60 countries now experiencing food insecurity, more than double the pre-pandemic figure. A clear example of this is that MSF’s work on malnutrition has increased by 50% between 2021 and 2022. However, despite overall growth, funding for the fight against malnutrition is expected to fall sharply in 2024.

Spanish humanitarian aid

​Spanish humanitarian aid funds increased by 47% compared to the previous year and amounted to 158.48 million euros.. The largest percentage was allocated to the consequences of the war in Ukraine. The Saharawi people, Occupied Palestinian Territories Venezuela, Syria, Niger, Colombia, Afghanistan and Mali stand out as the countries that have received the largest amount of funding.

“Spanish humanitarian work has demonstrated a certain level of commitment, crystallized in legislative progress, with the adoption of the Cooperation Law, as well as a noticeable increase in funds, partly derived from funding earmarked for the aftermath of the war in Ukraine,” says Francisco Rey.

Hospitals are losing protection

Adding to the concern over the continuation of so many outbreaks of violence, the last quarter of the year saw the latest conflict in the Gaza Strip, where rivals have ignored the most basic principles of international law and humanity. The reprehensible Hamas attack was followed by an Israeli military operation that openly violated international law and international humanitarian law by collectively punishing civilians, blocking humanitarian aid, and directly attacking all types of civilian infrastructure such as hospitals.

IN UkraineMSF teams witnessed cluster bomb-like damage in hospitals and discovered the presence of mines inside active hospitals in areas formerly under Russian occupation in several parts of the country.

“IN A loop “We have seen with our own eyes the attacks on hospitals, ambulances, medical staff and patients,” complains Marta Cañas, director general of MSF. We have lost medical colleagues, we have seen medical staff working on the same hospital floor with little to no supplies or anesthesia, we have seen mass evacuation orders that are impossible to comply with for hundreds of patients, and ultimatums that violate any principles of humanity. We have witnessed a blockade imposed by the Israeli government, which includes deprivation of food, water, fuel and electricity, which constitutes collective punishment against the entire population of Gaza, prohibited by international humanitarian law and which may constitute a war crime.”

Conflicts such as those in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip have shown that hospitals are no longer safe places, and medical staff and patients are deprived of the effective protection afforded them by international humanitarian law.

“Something is deeply undermined in the perception of humanitarian principles; the consideration that hospitals are not “neutral”, the lack of distinction between civilians and combatants. The danger is obvious and it is already here. War is a monster; If we do not stop and punish attacks on hospitals, the next war will undermine the Geneva Conventions even more than what we are already seeing,” concludes Marta Cañas.