Millions of children, women and men have suffered in the explosion of ethnic, religious and civil conflicts since the end of the Cold War. In 1994, conflict and genocidal acts in Rwanda and continuing emergencies elsewhere-particularly in Africa, western Asia, the former Yugoslavia and some areas of the former Soviet Union-further strained an already stretched system to provide international humanitarian assistance.
Natural disasters also affect a growing number of people, particularly in developing countries. The global death toll of natural disasters has risen almost tenfold since the 1960s with developing countries accounting for 90 per cent of the total. This indicates the degree to which poverty, population pressures and environmental degradation magnify the scale of destruction. Economic losses from natural disasters worldwide increased threefold from the 1960s to the 1980s and rose 40 per cent-from an estimated $44 billion to $62 billion-between 1991 and 1992.
Improving the speed and effectiveness of international humanitarian assistance and strengthening national capacities to prevent and cope with emergency situations are among the main responsibilities of the United Nations. Effective international assistance in response to major humanitarian emergencies requires planning, coordination, logistics, diplomacy and fund raising. The United Nations plays a major role in all these fields, coordinated through the Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA).
The United Nations is active as a provider of humanitarian assistance, primarily through its six operational agencies, and as a catalyst for action by governments, intergovernmental humanitarian organizations and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
Humanitarian diplomacy by the United Nations is often critical in securing access to populations suffering the effects of conflicts. Violations of humanitarian principles by warring parties and threats to the security of relief workers are, however, a growing concern.
Between June 1992 and June 1995, the United Nations launched 52 consolidated appeals to finance programs aimed at helping an estimated 180 million people in some 30 countries. Total funding sought amounted to some $11.4 billion, of which $7.3 billion was received.
Humanitarian action by the United Nations system goes beyond relief, to involve long term rehabilitation and development. The goal is to ensure that emergency relief contributes to future development. Sustainable economic and social development remains the best protection against disaster-both natural and that resulting from human action.
Helping countries incorporate disaster prevention and preparedness into their overall development plans is one of the ways the United Nations tries to assist. To raise awareness of the need for prevention and preparedness, the General Assembly has declared the period 1990-2000 to be the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction. One objective of the Decade is to encourage improvements in countries' abilities to reduce their vulnerability to disasters. The Decade also strives to increase international cooperation aimed at reducing loss of life, economic damage and social disruption caused by natural disasters, particularly in developing countries. A global mid-decade conference (Yokohama, Japan, 1994) brought together scientists, technicians and policy makers to develop a strategy for disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation.
Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA)
The United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA) coordinates the response of the United Nations system to major humanitarian emergencies, both natural and man-made, and promotes action to improve disaster prevention and preparedness. DHA works closely with United Nations operational agencies, governments, regional organizations, NGOs and intergovernmental humanitarian organizations. An arrangement between DHA and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) now covers environmental aspects of emergencies.
Established by the Secretary-General [Boutros Boutros-Ghali] in 1992, following a 1991 request by the General Assembly, DHA incorporates the former Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator (UNDRO), which focused mainly on natural disasters, and the Secretariat of the Decade. DHA's role is to provide leadership in order to ensure a rapid response by the United Nations system to natural disasters, technological disasters such as the 1986 explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine and major humanitarian crises, many of which result from conflicts within or between states.
The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, who also serves as United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator, is the United Nations system's principal policy advisor, coordinator and advocate on issues pertaining to humanitarian emergencies. Working with the heads of the system's operational agencies and major NGOs, as well as with governments and intergovernmental humanitarian organizations, the Coordinator advises the Secretary-General on emergencies and recommends action to be taken.
The Emergency Relief Coordinator chairs the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) whose members are the heads of United Nations operational agencies engaged in humanitarian relief-the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Major humanitarian organizations such as the International Organization for Migration and the International Committee of the Red Cross also participate. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and other NGOs are also invited to participate.
The IASC formulates system-wide responses to specific emergencies, determines priorities and aims at supporting activities to strengthen relief capacities within countries. It also addresses several other aspects of emergencies, such as assistance to the world's estimated 26 million internally displaced persons (persons displaced by disasters or by humanitarian crises within the borders of their own countries), action to deal with land mines estimated at some 100 million worldwide and demobilization of former combatants.
DHA coordinates field missions by the United Nations operational agencies to assess needs; issues inter-agency appeals for funding humanitarian assistance; organizes donor meetings and follow-up arrangements; monitors the status of contributions in response to the appeals; and issues reports to keep donors and others apprised of developments.
Virtually all United Nations humanitarian relief is funded by voluntary contributions. During 1994 alone, DHA launched consolidated inter-agency appeals which raised more than $2.7 billion to assist 27 million people in some 20 countries, in addition to appeals already in effect.
DHA administers a $50 million Central Emergency Revolving Fund which facilitates rapid humanitarian action in emergency situations until funds are made available by the donor community. By the end of May 1995, humanitarian agencies had borrowed from the fund on 38 occasions, drawing some $116 million since it became operational in 1992. Some $100 million had been paid back into the fund since that time.
In areas affected by humanitarian emergencies, coordination is critical in organizing a timely and coherent system-wide response while avoiding overlap, duplication and wasted resources and in identifying shortfalls in resources. In the event of an emergency in a developing country, the Resident Coordinator (normally the UNDP Resident Representative) or a specially appointed Humanitarian Coordinator reports directly to the Emergency Relief Coordinator and coordinates the United Nations system's response at the country level, working with Governments, NGOs and other humanitarian agencies as well.
In addition, United Nations Disaster Management Teams, consisting of country level representatives of the United Nations agencies under the leadership of the Resident Coordinator, have been established in many disaster prone developing countries. These teams make arrangements to coordinate relief activities in anticipation of an emergency.
DHA operates a 24 hour duty system for immediate response and dissemination of information on disasters. To permit rapid response to emergencies, particularly natural disasters, DHA has established, with the participation of donor governments, a United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team which can be deployed immediately to an affected country to help local and national authorities determine relief requirements and carry out coordination. DHA may also call upon civil and military emergency teams and expertise in response to natural disasters. The department operates a warehouse of relief items in Pisa, Italy, which can serve as a hub for airlifts of relief goods.
In collaboration with other international bodies and NGOs, DHA has helped launch programs aimed at improving disaster preparedness in more than 70 countries. The department's early warning system for natural disasters is being expanded to include information about other emergency situations. A Disaster Management Training Program, run jointly by DHA and UNDP, has provided training to some 1,500 people from more than 40 countries. DHA has also developed a Central Register of Disaster Management Capacities, which includes registers of emergency stockpiles run by humanitarian organizations, of disaster management expertise and of military and civil defense assets available for international disaster relief assistance.
In calling for improved coordination of humanitarian assistance in 1991, the General Assembly stressed the need to address the root causes of emergencies and to ensure early warning, prevention and preparedness, effective humanitarian relief as well as the transition to rehabilitation and development. Humanitarian relief needs to be provided in ways which support rehabilitation, recovery and long term development.
From Basic Facts About the United Nations. Published by United Nations Department of Public Information. Copyright 1995 United Nations.
