On World Humanitarian Day, Thank the Local Aid Workers

August 19 is World Humanitarian Day, dedicated to marking the sacrifice of people who have lost their lives working for humanitarian causes.

August 19 marks the anniversary of the 2003 UN headquarters bombing in Baghdad that claimed the lives of 22 people, including UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello.

Today we also celebrate the spirit that inspires humanitarian work around the world. The world’s humanitarian organisations, the UN and its agencies, the European commission, global and national NGOs, non-profits and the private sector are ready, able and eager to scale up, but financial resources are the constraints.

Meanwhile, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) is mourning and cherishing colleagues in South Sudan who disappeared without a trace and “pay tribute to the many in WFP and across the humanitarian community selflessly striving day in, day out, to meet the pressing needs of the vulnerable, hungry poor in hotspots around the world.”, P>. Just as the people of Europe have shown great commitment to delivering and supporting aid, we see – every day – selfless and heroic acts by humanitarian workers from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Pacific and the Americas. We urge them to emphasize the need to build local capacity, the importance of more humanitarian funding being granted directly to local actors, and more predictable humanitarian funding for crises, so the entire system can be confident money will arrive in time for an effective response. But the principles carried by MSF in conflict settings across different cultures are not meant to fix disputes or impose a preferred political order over the one in place or the one that will eventually emerge from the fighting.

“Ongoing conflicts and insecurity hamper the delivery of humanitarian aid”.

This year, more than 100 million women, men and children need life-saving humanitarian assistance. The UN’s call this year for almost $20bn – a record high – to fund life-saving aid for more than 80 million people has met with less than 30% funding.

It is an unacceptable deficit in humanity – and we can avoid this catastrophe.

In our digitally connected world, it’s easier than ever to communicate humanitarian messages across the globe as part of a united effort to improve people’s lives. The World Humanitarian Summit in 2016 is a key one as it will shape the future direction of the global humanitarian system.