LIBYA – EC Humanitarian assistance

• On 22 December, the European Commission announced the allocation of an additional €2 million in humanitarian aid to assist the internally displaced amid the instability and violence that is currently plaguing Libya. These resources will help address most acute needs such as food, medical assistance and psychosocial support, shelter and winter items. Since May, nearly 400 000 people have been displaced.

SYRIA – Humanitarian access and assistance

• On 22 December, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the Government of Syria authorized the delivery of emergency medical supplies to opposition-held parts of Aleppo and the besieged districts of Eastern Ghouta and Moadamiyah in the outskirts of the capital Damascus.
The deliveries are being prepared for the last week of 2014.

• The WHO estimates that one million people have been wounded since the beginning of the war in Syria.

BANGLADESH – Communal Violence

• Communal violence broke out in the Chittagong Hill Tracks (CHT) on the 16 December as a result of land disputes. Reports suggest that up to 50 houses were set ablaze, shops and places of worship destroyed in Naniarchar Upazila of Rangamati District (CHT). Tensions remain high. The CHT Commission is urging the Government to ensure the safety and security of all indigenous people of Naniarchar and all other areas in the CHT.

COLOMBIA – Landslides

• A landslide occurred in the municipality of Mercaderes (Cauca department) on 20 December, killing six people and destroying a bridge. Another landslide occurred on the same day in the municipality of Bolivar, destroying three houses and six bridges. Media reported nearly 13 000 people isolated in four villages.

SRI LANKA – Floods

• Heavy rain in the past few days caused floods in several parts of Sri Lanka (Northern, Central, North Western, Eastern, North Central and Uva Provinces). As of 23 December, there were three dead, over 490 000 people affected, at least 82 000 people evacuated to safety centres, 1 900 houses destroyed and over 8 500 partially damaged. The Government of Sri Lanka is providing cooked meals, water and non-food assistance.

• In the next 24 h, heavy rain and strong winds may still affect the flood affected areas.

MALAYSIA – Severe weather

• Heavy rain continues affecting several parts of Malaysia, causing rivers to overflow and floods in Sabah, Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang states.

• As of 23 December, four people have been killed in Kelantan since 16 December and there were 20 468 evacuees in Kelantan, 6 003 in Terengganu, 2 386 in Pahang and more than 100 in Sabah.

• A Red Warning for heavy rain was in effect in parts of Peninsular Malaysia, as of 23 December (Malaysian Meteorological Department).

INDONESIA – Landslide

• As of 21 December, search and rescue efforts in Banjarnegara regency (Central Java) have stopped. BNPB reports a total of 95 deaths due to the landslide that occurred on 12 December, while 13 people remain missing. Local authorities have now shifted attention to the relocation of evacuees, whose official number has reached 2,038.

Global Estimates 2015 - People displaced by disasters

The gFSC global dashboard provides a quick snapshot of the country-level Food Security Clusters around the world. The updated dasboard shows that as of October 2015, the country-level Food Security Clusters remain only at 52 percent funded against their yearly requirements

COLOMBIA

• Heavy rain has been affecting western and centralwestern areas of the country over the past few days causing floods and landslides.

• Media reported at least 100 houses damaged in Valle del Cauca and Antioquia departments.

• Over the next 24 h more heavy rain is forecast for the already affected areas of the country.

IDEAM, NOAA, Local Media

SRI LANKA, INDIA, BANGLADESH, MYANMAR/BURMA

• TC ROANU caused widespread damage and casualties in several countries.

• Bangladesh: 24 dead, 100 people injured, over 513 300 evacuated and 20 000 homes destroyed. Approx. 118 000 people are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

• Myanmar/Burma: several damaged homes, bridges and temporary IDP shelters.

• India: two dead, two injured, 2 500 people evacuated and a large number of homes were damaged.

• Sri Lanka: 104 dead, 31 people injured, 99 are still missing, over 21 400 remain displaced and 5 100 homes were damaged.

ECHO, GDACS, JTWC, RMSC, OCHA, DMC, Local Media

CHINA

• A Tropical Depression formed over the South China Sea on 26 May and started moving north towards southern China. It reached the coast of Guangdong, close to Yangjiang, in the morning of 27 May (UTC) with max. sustained winds of 45 km/h. Then it started moving inland, weakening.

• Heavy rain may affect Guangdong, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian, as well as Hong Kong on 27-28 May.

CMA, JTWC, Hong Kong Observatory, Local Media

SOMALIA

• Recent floods in Somalia's central Hiran region bordering Ethiopia has caused displacement and created urgent humanitarian needs. At least 70 000 people have been displaced and three people died in Beletweyne.

• ECHO experts are in contact with partner organisations regarding emergency preparedness and response activities. Flash floods in October last year affected at least 132 000 people in south central Somalia.

ECHO, UN, NGOs

VIETNAM

• Heavy rain has been affecting several areas of the north-eastern and north-central regions, over the past few days.

• Media reported one dead and over 200 houses damaged.

• Over the next 24 h more heavy rain is forecast for the already affected areas of the country.

NCHMF, NOAA, Media

Approximately 12 million people lived in protracted refugee situations* around the world at the end of 2015, comprising nearly two-thirds of the global refugee population. A protracted refugee situation exists when 25,000 or more refugees originating from the same country have sought refuge in another country for at least five consecutive years.

*These numbers include people in a refugee-like situation

The map below shows asylum applications by under age 18 year olds and gender. Darker colours mean more people have applied in a certain country. Use the slider to select a year or the drop down menus below to display data for different age groups or different home countries.

United Nations Coordinated Appeals

• As of 31 July, United Nations Coordinated Appeals and Refugee Response Plans within the Global Humanitarian Overview (GHO) require US$23.5 billion to meet the humanitarian needs of 102.3 million crisis-affected people in 38 countries. The appeals are funded at $8.1 billion, leaving a shortfall of $15.4 billion.

• On 3 July, a $25.2 million appeal was launched to address the urgent medical, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and food security needs of 600,000 people in Gaza impacted by the acute energy crisis which began there in April 2017. On 17 July, UN agencies and humanitarian partners in the Republic of Congo launched a humanitarian response plan requiring $23.7 million to help 138,000 people suffering the repercussions of violence and insecurity in the Pool region. Urgent funding is required to save lives, in particular to address food security and nutrition needs.

• A series of landslides in Bangladesh led the in-country Humanitarian Coordination Task Team to issue a Response Plan requiring $10 million to provide life-saving assistance, reduce vulnerabilities and strengthen public services for the benefit of 51,000 people over the next six months.

• In Ukraine, the deteriorating humanitarian situation is triggering increased needs. It will be important to prepare vulnerable people in Ukraine for the coming winter. In Haiti, at heightened risk from the Atlantic hurricane season, 2.4 million people countrywide are factored in to the Humanitarian Response Plan to receive protection, early recovery and other humanitarian aid.

• In Yemen, an estimated 20.7 million people now require some form of aid – a 10 per cent increase since October 2016. As of 25 July, more than 400,000 suspected cholera cases and nearly 1,900 associated deaths had been reported, while 17 million people were food insecure – a 21 per cent leap since last year. In spite of the desperate situation, as of 25 July partners had received only 43 per cent of total financial requirements for the 2017 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP). Please see icon overleaf for information on urgent funding needs in CAR, Chad, DPRK, DRC, Haiti, Myanmar, oPt, Republic of Congo, Sudan, Ukraine and Yemen.

• As at the end of July, the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has approved $274.7 million for 28 countries. In July the fund allocated $8.5 million to four emergencies, including $2 million to Myanmar to assist people affected by Cyclone Mora, in addition to $1 million for people impacted by the recent deadly landslides in Bangladesh. CERF approved some $2.5 million for the Philippines to prevent the outbreak of communicable and water-borne diseases following the Marawi conflict. In Sudan $3 million of a total $5 million application has been approved for swift reduction in acute malnutrition and mortality in children under age five in newly accessible areas of the Jebel Marra region of Darfur. Forty donors have contributed $347.4 million to the fund thus far in 2017, and an additional contribution of $89.2 million is expected by year-end.

• As of end July, 23 donors have contributed $477 million (including $110.9 million in pledges) to the 18 country-based pooled funds (CBPFs) active in 2017. Humanitarian partners have received $315 million with another $37.7 million pending approval. The highest amounts have been allocated by Funds in Yemen ($59.4 million), Iraq ($55.5 million) and Ethiopia ($36.6 million). Some 50 per cent has gone to international NGOs, 27 per cent to UN organizations, 22 per cent to national NGOs and 1 per cent to Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement organizations. Real-time information on CBPF contributions and allocations is available on http://gms.unocha.org/bi

United Nations-Coordinated Appeals

• As of 30 September, United Nations-coordinated appeals (Humanitarian Response Plans, Refugee Response Plans and flash appeals) within the Global Humanitarian Overview require US$24.2 billion to meet the humanitarian needs of 104.1 million crisis-affected people in 39 countries. The appeals are funded at $10.4 billion, leaving a shortfall of $13.8 billion.

• In September, Hurricanes Irma and Maria caused untold devastation across the Caribbean. A three-month Regional Response Plan for the Caribbean was launched on 15 September seeking $27.1 million to cover the urgent needs of the most vulnerable people in the region’s most-impacted nations, territories and states. The plan has received $2.6 million in reported funding to date, though some of the over $20 million in funding for the region will probably apply to the plan. The Cuba Plan of Action requesting $55.1 million was launched on 19 September and is currently funded at $8.8 million. On 29 September, a Flash Appeal for Dominica was launched requesting $31.1 million to respond to the urgent needs of 65,000 people affected by Hurricane Maria.

• In Bangladesh, as of 28 September, more than half a million Rohingya refugees had fled across the border from Myanmar in just over a month. Partners in Bangladesh released a revised response plan targeting 1.2 million people for assistance, including new refugees, previous refugees and host communities, over six months; its requirements are $434 million. (The Cuba Plan of Action, the Regional Response Plan for the Caribbean and the Preliminary Response Plan for the refugees and host communities in Bangladesh are currently not counted as part of the Global Humanitarian Overview.)

• In Libya, $75 million is urgently needed to provide 900,000 people with life-saving assistance in healthcare, civilian protection and basic services. Gaps are particularly serious in the health sector: more than 50% of Libyan health facilities are either partially or not at all functional. In Ukraine, with the harsh winter imminent, critical additional support is needed to ensure that winterisation needs of affected people along the contact line are met. The Humanitarian Response Plan which seeks $204 million remains underfunded at just 25%. Please see icons overleaf for information on urgent funding needs in Bangladesh, CAR, Chad, DRC, Libya, oPt, Somalia, Sudan and Ukraine.

• As of 30 September, the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has approved $339 million for 32 countries. In September, the fund allocated $27 million to 5 emergencies, including $8 million for immediate response to people affected by Hurricane Irma in Cuba.

• The fund allocated $7 million to humanitarian partners in Bangladesh to assist hundreds of thousands of refugees arriving from Myanmar (In addition $12 million was allocated in early October). CERF also approved $7 million for Nepal and Bangladesh for life-saving support to the flood-affected population. For underfunded emergencies, CERF approved $5 million in September out of the $45 million set aside for the second round of the 2017 underfundedemergency allocations; the remaining $40 million is currently under review. For 2017, 43 donors have contributed a total of $359.3 million to CERF, and eight other donors have pledged $93.7 million. CERF is projecting an income of $453.9 million for 2017, nearly $4 million over the current $450 million funding target.

• As of end September, 26 donors have contributed $571 million (including $86.5 million in pledges) to the 18 country-based pooled funds active in 2017. Over 500 humanitarian partners have received a combined $408 million from the funds, and another $77.4 million is pending approval. The funds with the largest volumes of allocations are those in Yemen ($59.4 million), Iraq ($55.6 million) and Ethiopia ($52.6 million). Some 45% of allocations has gone to international NGOs, 32% to UN organizations, 22% to national NGOs and 1% to Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement organizations. Real-time information on CBPF contributions and allocations is available on http://gms.unocha.org/bi.

15 times EU Civil Protection Mechanism (EUCPM) provided environmental expertise to UN Environment/OCHA Joint Unit (JEU) since 2014.

• EUCPM prepares and responds to environmental disasters, including incidents that arise as secondary effects of a natural disaster.

• DG ECHO, operating through the EUCPM, is among JEU’s most important partners.

• DG ECHO's collaboration with the JEU has been constantly increasing during the past years, raising at a level of 50% of all JEU missions since 2016.

• DG ECHO supports the organisation and roll-out of 4 Environment and Emergencies Trainings (EET) from 2017 to 2020.

Funding required: $25.39 B

Funding received: $8.71 B

Unmet requirements: 16.68 B

Coverage: 34.3%

People in need: 134.0 M

People to receive aid: 96.2 M

Countries affected: 40

As of the end of June 2018, 21 Humanitarian Response Plans (HRP) and the Syria Regional Refugee & Resilience Plan (3RP) require US$25.39 billion to assist 96.2 million people in urgent need of humanitarian support. On 29 June, the 21 HRPs and the Syria 3RP were funded at $8.71 billion: 34.3 per cent of financial requirements for 2018. The amount has edged up from $8.25 billion as reported in the GHO Status Report issued in mid-June. Humanitarian organizations still need another $16.68 billion to cover these response plans.
A possible trend in global funding is emerging in countries with HRPs and the countries covered by the Syria 3RP: donors are contributing more humanitarian funding through these appeals than outside them. In 2016, 52 per cent of humanitarian funding was contributed through the HRPs and Syria 3RP, and in 2017 considerably more funds were contributed toward humanitarian action within the HRPs and Syria 3RP countries than outside them, with 66 per cent of all funding invested in these appeals. So far this year, the HRPs and Syria 3RP have together received two-thirds (68%) of global humanitarian funding.

Pooled funds

Between 1 January and 30 June 2018, the Emergency Relief Coordinator approved a total of $308.9 million through the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), including $209.2 million through the rapid response window and $99.7 million through the underfunded emergencies window. In June, the Emergency Relief Coordinator approved a total of $45.5 million in rapid response grants for activities in Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Ukraine and in Colombia to assist Venezuelan migrants and asylum seekers. The largest allocations included $26.2 million to scale-up early response in Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali to address the impact of drought and worsening food insecurity and to mitigate the situation during the lean season; $10.2 million to provide immediate relief to flood-affected communities in Kenya and Ethiopia respectively; and $5.9 million for emergency assistance to conflict-affected people in the non-Government controlled areas of eastern Ukraine following the recent opening of humanitarian access.
Over the same period, 18 country-based-pooled funds (CBPF) received $395 million in contributions from 27 donors. During this period, $226 million were allocated to a total of 533 projects, implemented by 377 partners. Almost three quarters of the overall CBPF allocations were disbursed to NGOs, including 25 per cent ($56.3 million) directly to national and local NGOs. Another quarter was allocated to UN agencies and a smaller portion to Red Cross/Red Crescent organizations, which received 1.8 percent of funding ($4 million). Compared to the same period in 2017, 23 donors had contributed $275 million for the 18 CBPFs and a total of $351 million had been allocated to 739 projects implemented by 477 partners. The donor base increased this year as the following donors added contributions to CBPFs: Andorra, Malaysia, Montenegro, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.

Country updates

The Secretary-General of the UN visited Cox's Bazar in early July and appealed to the international community to substantially increase its financial support for the Rohingya refugee crisis. There are now around 915,000 Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. Their needs remain enormous and the HRP is insufficiently funded to meet them. The monsoon is severely impacting refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar.
Two-thirds of the average rain for June fell in just five days this month (600mm). The floods which ensued damaged 150 learning centres, several latrine and water points and three nutrition facilities. More than 2,000 shelters have been damaged and 18,000 people affected.
Meanwhile, humanitarian partners are working to provide refugees and host communities with 16 million litres of water and 400 tons of food per day. Humanitarian partners seek to provide protection services for 144,000 single mothers and obstetric care for more than 50,000 pregnant women.

In Syria, some 13 million people remain in need across the country, including more than 6 million displaced people. In mid-June, large-scale military operations were launched in the south of the country. By the end of the month, displacement levels exceeded anything seen in the area since the beginning of the crisis. Cross-border convoys were interrupted due to insecurity, with intense airstrikes and shelling ongoing in several locations. In Idleb, half of the estimated 2.5 million people in the governorate are displaced and violence continues to impact civilians and civilian infrastructure. Response continues in eastern Ghouta, southern Damascus and northern rural Homs, which have recently come under Government control, and for people displaced from Afrin in Aleppo governorate. On average, humanitarian organizations are reaching 5.2 million people a month. Substantial, additional funding is a prerequisite to prolonging assistance over the next six months.
Afghanistan is in the midst of a drought, the scale of which has not been seen since 2011. So far in 2018, more than two thirds of the country has been affected by a severe rain deficit and limited snowfall, negatively affecting water availability during the spring meltdown and impacting both rainfed and irrigated agricultural lands, as well as pastures. Wheat production in 2017 was estimated at 57 per cent below the five-year average and the 2018 harvest is forecast to be even lower - down from 4.2 million MT to 3.5 million MT. The drought has led to a reduction in animal fodder and has weakened livestock. It has resulted in the distress selling of animals. Across 20 provinces, sheep prices have decreased by around 40 per cent while fodder prices have increased by 100 per cent. Responding to this emergency, the humanitarian country team decided to revise the HRP to seek an additional US$117 million for the remainder of the year. The additional funding will be used to provide food security, agriculture, water, sanitation, hygiene and nutritional support for 1.4 million people mostly affected by the drought.
One out of four people in the Central African Republic is currently displaced internally or in a neighbouring country. During the first semester of 2018, the number of internally displaced people increased by 70 per cent, compared to the same period in 2017, surpassing 690,000 persons. This figure lowered to 255,000 in the course of June. The number of refugees has increased by 30 per cent in the first semester, reaching over 583,000. The spike in tensions and the armed violence that has erupted since April is also affecting the capital,
Bangui. Humanitarian needs in the country have increased from 2.2 million people in need in early 2017 to 2.5 million this year, with a multiplication of hotspots. Underfunding remains one of the biggest impediments to stepping up the humanitarian response in the country, to the point where some humanitarian partners have been temporarily forced to disengage from areas in the interior of the country where they were the sole providers of basic social services to the population. Without adequate funding, humanitarians will be unable to address the needs of 1.9 million people targeted in the HRP.
In DRC, the number of people in need of humanitarian protection and assistance has nearly doubled over the last year, from 7.3 million in 2017 to 13.1 million this year. Over half of their needs are generated by conflict and population movement. Violence has had a direct impact on acute food insecurity, with more than 7.7 million people across the country facing a food security and nutrition crisis.
Funding for humanitarian action in DPRK has drastically declined from $300 million in 2004 to less than $11 million in 2018. This financial shortfall has had detrimental consequences on the lives of the most vulnerable. More than 40 per cent (10.3 million) of the population remains undernourished. Around a third of pregnant women are anaemic. One out of five children under-five are stunted with likely irreversible physical and cognitive repercussions. The level of access to essential health services, clean water and sanitation continues to be unacceptable. UN agencies have already been forced to scale down lifesaving programmes. Nutrition support to 190,000 kindergarten children has been halted since November 2017 and food rations for beneficiaries have been reduced since February 2018. Further scale-back would have a devastating impact on the lives of millions of vulnerable people.
The health system in Gaza, oPt, is on the verge of collapse. Demonstrations since 30 March have resulted in nearly 140 Palestinians being killed and over 15,000 injured, of whom some 8,000 have been hospitalized. The influx of casualties at a time of severe medical and funding shortages, has stretched the response capacity of the health system in Gaza to its limit. Humanitarian actors are responding to the urgent needs by providing immediate life-saving medical supplies and healthcare, as well as protection and psychological support. An additional $13.7 million is urgently required to scale up the immediate response until the end of August 2018. Another $4.5 million are urgently needed for the UN-led emergency fuel operation on which critical health, water and sanitation facilities in Gaza rely. UNRWA, the main provider of assistance in the oPt, accounts for 53 per cent of the HRP for oPt. The organization is struggling with its most severe funding shortfall to date. The UN Secretary-General has warned of the risks of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, where the desperate situation is compounded by potential suspension of key United Nations programmes which are a lifeline for Palestinians in Gaza. The Secretary-General warned that disruption to services may result and called on donors to step forward with support, especially through UNRWA. For more detail on why it is important to provide sustained funding for Gaza, see the Report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of Security Council resolution 2334 (2016), S/2018/614, 18 June 2018: http://undocs.org/S/2018/614

Four years of conflict have put a tremendous strain on the civilian population in eastern Ukraine. Disrupted access to critical facilities and diminished livelihoods mean that some 3.4 million people are without basic supplies and services and need protection and assistance to ensure their survival. Ukraine has the highest proportion of elderly crisis-affected people in the world. Some 1.5 million Ukrainians have been displaced across the country. Many families cannot return home due to hostilities or lost livelihoods, and some 200,000 people live in daily fear of shelling.

Funding Required: $25.41B
Funding Received: $9.39B
Unmet Requirements: $16.02B
Coverage: 37.0%

People in need: 134.0M
People to receive aid: 95.8M
Countries affected: 41

As of the end of July 2018, 21 Humanitarian Response Plans (HRP) and the Syria Regional Response Plan (3RP) require US$25.41 billion to assist 95.8 billion people in urgent need of humanitarian support. The 21 HRPs and the Syria 3RP were funded at $9.52 billion: 37 per cent of financial requirements for 2018. Humanitarian organisations still require $16.02 billion to meet the needs covered by these plans.

Requirements are $2 billion higher than last year at the same time. Overall coverage is also slightly higher (three per cent), with $1.4 billion more received this year than last.

Pooled funds

Between 1 January and 31 July 2018, the Emergency Relief Coordinator approved $333 million through the Central Emergency Response Fund, including $233 million through the rapid response window and $100 million through the underfunded emergencies window. In July, $24 million was approved in rapid response grants to respond to displacement in Ethiopia, population movement from Venezuela into Colombia, worsening food insecurity in Niger, and a volcanic eruption in Guatemala. The largest allocation was $15 million to provide relief items, safe water, sanitation facilities, and health and nutrition treatment to 800,000 people displaced by inter-communal violence in Gedeo and West Guji in Ethiopia.

Between 1 January and 6 August 2018, 17 country-based pooled funds (CBPF) received $536 million in contributions from 30 donors (including $80 million in pledges). During this period, $369 million were allocated to a total of 663 humanitarian projects, implemented by 443 partners, with the funds in Yemen ($92 million), DRC ($36 million) and Iraq ($34 million) allocating the largest amounts. During July, the funds in Afghanistan, Jordan, Nigeria, South Sudan and Turkey were processing allocations. As for overall CBPF allocations, 58 per cent were disbursed to NGOs, including 19 per cent ($71 million) directly to national and local NGOs. Another 41 per cent ($150 million) was allocated to UN agencies and 1 per cent of funding was allocated to Red Cross/Red Crescent organizations.

Country updates

Yemen is the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Some 22.2 million people – about 75 per cent of the population – require humanitarian assistance or protection. This includes 8.4 million people who do not know where their next meal is coming from. An unprecedented outbreak of cholera and acute watery diarrhoea has resulted in more than 1.1 million cases since April 2017. Escalating conflict in Hudaydah has displaced more than 350,000 people since 1 June. More than 90 per cent of these people have received emergency relief packages distributed by humanitarian partners. Sustained hostilities in Hudaydah city, interruptions to port operations or a siege would be catastrophic and must be avoided. Humanitarian programmes have expanded significantly across Yemen. In June, partners provided emergency food assistance to 7.5 million people – an increase of 200,000 people since January. Similar increases have occurred in other sectors. As of mid-year, about 60 per cent of people targeted with assistance had been reached. Generous and flexible funding has been key. Donors have provided more than 60 per cent of the HRP’s $3 billion requirements – including an early, unearmarked $930 million contribution from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Partners recently sequenced the HRP to show first-line, second-line and full response activities, and require full funding to deliver all programmes based on this plan.

Needs remain high in Ethiopia with 7.88 million people food insecure, as per the Humanitarian and Disaster Resilience Plan (HDRP) released in March. There has been a major surge in displacement since the beginning of June around Gedeo (SNNPR) and West Guji (Oromia) zones resulting in the release of a response plan which seeks $117.7m to assist the 818,250 recently displaced people. Some funding has already been mobilized by Government and partners, primarily through reallocating resources that were originally intended for important response elsewhere in the country under the HDRP.

Fighting in south-west Syria continued to impact hundreds of thousands of civilians, with 180,000 people remaining newly displaced as of the end of July. Aerial bombardment and artillery shelling resulted in civilian deaths and destruction of civilian infrastructure in many areas. Humanitarian workers and service providers were caught up in the violence, with many displaced alongside other civilians. Humanitarian response continued in Dar’a governorate, building on cross-border prepositioning and subsequently drawing on programming from inside Syria. However more than 100,000 newly displaced people remained largely cut off from sustained assistance in Quneitra governorate. Partners identified priority requirements of $85 million to cover the most urgent protection and assistance needs of 300,000 people across the south-west up until mid-October. Concerns also persist around the threat of further military escalation in the north-west of the country, where the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in Aleppo and Idleb governorates had increased by close to 600,000 by mid-year, to a total of 4.2 million, of whom half were in acute need. Response across the north-west continues to depend on cross-border assistance delivered from Turkey.

At least 3.4 million people in Cameroon need humanitarian assistance and protection. Six out of ten regions are affected by humanitarian crises related to Boko Haram in the Far North, the conflict in the Central African Republic and the worsening situation in the Anglophone regions. Further, growing levels of food insecurity and malnutrition are affecting over 2.6 million people, including 1.5 million children, and there is an ongoing cholera outbreak in the Center and North regions. The 2018 HRP calls for $319.7 million but is only 23 per cent funded. Additional donor support is critical to ensure life-saving assistance to the most vulnerable populations, especially the newly displaced persons in the Far North and the South-West.

Although the number of IDPs in the Central African Republic (CAR) fell to 608,000 during June, a seven per cent decrease compared to May, this does not indicate an improvement of the situation. The tensions and armed violence that erupted in April continue, and are causing new displacements in areas with very limited access. More than half (354,017) of the IDPs are staying with host families, while some 249,522 are in IDP sites and settlements, and another 4,489 are scattered in the bush, in desperate need of assistance. Increasing insecurity is affecting the delivery of aid, as five humanitarian workers have been killed since the beginning of 2018, making CAR one of the most dangerous countries in the world for the delivery of humanitarian aid. Moreover, underfunding remains one of the biggest impediments to stepping up the humanitarian response. At mid-year, the 2018 HRP had only received 26 per cent of its $515.6 million requirement. Without additional funding, humanitarian actors will be unable to address the needs of 1.9 million people targeted in the Plan.

The Marawi Conflict Response and Resources Overview (Mindanao, Philippines) seeks $61 million to provide essential services, food security, protection, livelihood and early recovery support for 199,000 conflict-affected people in Mindanao, of whom 69,412 are still displaced, from July 2017 to December 2018. While an organized return is underway, the majority of those who were forced to flee during the conflict will continue to require humanitarian assistance until sustainable recovery activities are underway, especially for those from the most affected areas of the city. Some $11 million (18%) has been received to-date.

Afghanistan is in the midst of a drought, the scale of which has not been seen since 2011. It has already resulted in some 84,000 people being displaced to Hirat City in western Afghanistan, with up to 150,000 at risk of being displaced. In 2017, wheat production was at an all-time low (57 per cent under the five-year average) and the expected shortfall in production in 2018 is decreasing further -- from 4.2 million metric tonnes to 3.5 million metric tonnes. This decrease is impacting some two million already food insecure people across two thirds of Afghanistan. The ongoing drought led the Humanitarian Country Team to increase the Afghanistan 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan requirements by $117 million, for a total of $547 million. The HRP is currently only 29 per cent funded. Additional funding is required to provide food security, agriculture, water, sanitation, hygiene and nutritional support. The humanitarian community is currently conducting a multi-sectoral humanitarian-development assessment, led by OCHA and UNDP, to examine both humanitarian needs and the wider, long-term complexities underpinning the drought crisis, that would need structural support through development programming.

Four years of conflict have put a tremendous strain on the civilian population in eastern Ukraine. Disrupted access to critical facilities and diminished livelihoods mean that some 3.4 million people are without basic supplies and services and need assistance for protection and survival. Some 200,000 people live under constant fear of shelling every day. One and a half million Ukrainians have been displaced across the country and cannot return home due to hostilities or lost livelihoods. Over 1 million civilians cross the “contact line” every month through operational checkpoints, which lack required shade, cooling spaces and healthcare facilities. Under these conditions, coupled with prolonged waiting hours and summer heat, civilians—many of them elderly—suffer health-related complications. Funding for the Humanitarian Response Plan is urgently needed, as only 27 per cent of the required $187 million has been received so far to respond to the urgent needs of 2.3 million vulnerable Ukrainians with assistance and protection throughout 2018.

Haiti is well into the hurricane season and increased international support for emergency preparedness efforts is required. Haitians are still recovering from consecutive natural disasters, including a major earthquake, hurricanes, floods and drought, and need sustained support. This support is not only to obtain life’s basic necessities, but also to move beyond recurring disasters and build sustainable livelihoods and live in resilient communities that are prepared for future shocks. Humanitarian actors aim to provide humanitarian assistance and protection services to the 2.2 million most vulnerable Haitians, but they have received only 9 per cent of the required $252 million this year.

Total funding: € 656 million

This document presents an overview of safety, security and access incidents affecting aid delivery between January 2017 and June 2018. The report is based on incidents identified in open sources and reported by Aid in Danger partner agencies using the Security in Numbers Database (SiND). The focus is on countries where possible changing or emerging risks can be identified. See our Regional Security Incident Analysis for selective country overviews. The total number of reported incidents below reflects the willingness of agencies to share information. It is neither a complete count, nor representative.

In 2018, DG ECHO provided EUR 3,83 million to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to support its Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF). When a National Red Cross or Red Crescent Society needs immediate financial support to respond to a disaster, it can request funds from the DREF.

In 2018 this DG ECHO support was used for 39 DREF operations which assisted more than 3 100 000 beneficiaries. The support contributes to saving lives, preventing and alleviating human suffering, and safeguarding the integrity and dignity of people affected by natural disasters and man-made crises.

Aid workers arrested1: data trends 2018

• In 2018, 184 aid workers were reportedly arrested in 81 incidents across 27 countries. A high number of aid workers were reportedly arrested in Bangladesh (61), South Sudan (53) and Syria (11).

• The number of individual aid workers arrested peaked in the first two months of 2018. The main reason for this was the detention of 49 aid workers in Bangladesh during passport and visa checks at or near IDP camps in Chittagong division.

• Most aid worker arrests or detentions lasted on average 8-12 hours; however, there were reports of aid workers being held for longer. In Lau State, South Sudan, a convoy of 29 aid workers were detained and repeatedly questioned by SPLA-IO forces about permission to perform NGO activities in the region. They were held overnight and released following engagement with the local district council member.

• In over a third of reported aid worker arrests there was no indication that the arrest or detention was directly related to the agency, its identity or its primary activity of aid delivery.
Instead, the detention or arrest of 86 aid workers was related to personal behaviour, including accusations of the theft of or fraud related to aid supplies, the sexual abuse of minors, and personal disputes or general administrative procedures, including documentation checks at airport immigration, during random stops and searches at checkpoints, and at hotels.

• However, at least 51 aid workers were reportedly arrested for the work the agency performed, their presence in the community or for violating NGO-related laws. Incidents include the following:

o In the Andean region, Colombia, five national INGO aid workers were detained by indigenous authorities, and released after being instructed not to return to the northern part of the territory.

o In Greece, an international LNGO aid worker was charged with people-trafficking after having been accused of crimes relating to the LNGO’s provision of aid to migrants who had crossed the Mediterranean from the Middle East.

o In Burundi, at least four aid workers were arrested for allegedly violating a law imposing ethnic staff quotas on INGOs. The law requires all foreign aid groups to commit to employing 60 per cent of their local employees from the Hutu ethnic group and 40 per cent from the Tutsi group.

o In China, an international aid worker was detained by state security officers for possible violation of the Foreign NGO Law, on the basis that the organisation he worked for was not legally registered in China.

• 20 times the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (EUCPM) provided environmental expertise to the UN Environment/OCHA Joint Unit (JEU) since 2014.

• EUCPM prepares and responds to environmental emergencies, including incidents that arise as secondary effects of disasters.

• DG ECHO, operating through the EUCPM, is among JEU’s most important partners.

• DG ECHO’s collaboration with the JEU has been constantly increasing during the past years, raising at a level of 80% of all JEU missions in 2018

• DG ECHO supports the organisation and roll-out of 4 Environment and Emergencies Trainings (EET) from 2017 to 2020

Aprehensiones en la frontera sur de los Estados Unidos

• El año fiscal 2019 registra el número más alto de aprehensiones después del 2007, más del doble del registro final del 2018.

• Con respecto a las nacionalidades de las personas aprehendidas, 19,6% eran mexicanas, 31% guatemaltecas, 29,8% hondureñas y 10,6% salvadoreñas y tan solo un 9% corresponde a otras nacionalidades.

• En el contexto de nuevas políticas introducidas en 2019, las aprehensiones mensuales se desplomaron significativamente después de alcanzar un máximo de 132,856 en mayo de ese año.

• La composición familiar de las personas aprehendidas cambió significativamente en el 2019. El porcentaje de grupos familiares aprehendidos se duplicó a 56% en comparación con el 2018, mientras los adultos viajando solos cayó casi a la mitad.

• En el caso de ciudadanos de los países del norte de Centroamérica, el porcentaje de grupos familiares es aún más alto, aproximadamente del 71%.