This is one of the lowest figures for assistance in recent years as aid organisations are struggling to raise funds in the context of a series of humanitarian crises around the world.
With the world suffering a series of shocks and funding sources gradually drying up, many African countries are facing serious humanitarian disasters.
Support money for the above countries comes from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). In addition to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, and Syria, the money will also be used to support emergency response in Chad, Niger, Lebanon, and Honduras.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs stressed that the data reflecting the funding received by CERF in 2023 shows it has decreased to the lowest level since 2018. The data reflects the reality that funding sources cannot keep up with rising humanitarian needs.
Global aid demand reached nearly 57 billion USD last year as multiple conflicts broke out, with the most worrying being the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
Last month, in a statement calling on countries and donors to increase financial support, the OCHA said the gap between financial needs and mobilised resources had reached an unprecedented level at 35 billion USD.
As a continent heavily affected by conflicts, the COVID-19 pandemic, and climate change leading to prolonged food crises, Africa is facing a major challenge in food security.
Many countries on the continent are close to famine. Spokesman for UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric said that at least 25 million people across Sudan, South Sudan, and Chad are facing increased hunger and malnutrition due to widespread conflict in Sudan.
The lack of hundreds of millions of dollars in funding has forced the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) to warn of the imminent risk of humanitarian disaster for the Sudanese people.
With limited resources, the WFP can only prioritise those who have recently fled to neighbouring countries. This means that previous refugees must face the harsh reality of no longer receiving support.
In addition, about 18 million people in Sudan are facing serious food insecurity, many of whom are still stuck in war zones. Sudan has witnessed serious clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 15, 2023.
The fighting has left more than 13,000 people dead and forced more than 11 million people to flee.
After nearly 10 months of conflict, more than half of Sudan's population is in need of protection and humanitarian assistance. In addition, the conflict has also forced more than 1.5 million people to flee across borders to countries that are already receiving large numbers of refugees.
The WFP assesses the current situation in Sudan as dire, with nearly 18 million people facing acute hunger, and about 5 million people suffering from emergency hunger due to conflicts in areas such as Khartoum, Darfur, and Kordofan.
Eddie Rowe, WFP’s Sudan Representative and Country Director, said WFP has food in Sudan, but a lack of humanitarian access and other unnecessary hurdles are slowing operations and preventing vital aid from reaching the people.
Meanwhile, in Ethiopia, new and ongoing droughts, conflicts, and epidemics are growing increasingly complicated, leaving at least 20 million people, including about 10.8 million children, in need of emergency humanitarian aid in 2024.
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said this year the agency needs 535 million USD to address the growing challenges facing vulnerable populations and prevent the consequences of overlapping crises in Ethiopia.
The above funds are needed to meet basic food demand, provide reproductive health and vaccination services clean water to families in need.
International humanitarian aid agencies are calling on donors and governments to increase emergency humanitarian assistance to avert the hunger crisis in Ethiopia. A drought due to El Nino has impacted summer rainfall in Ethiopia, leading to serious water shortages and dry grasslands, affecting crops in many places.
The worst affected areas in Northern Ethiopia include Amhara, Tigray, and Afar, where communities have yet to recover from the 2020-2022 conflict.
Faced with the dangerous situation in humanitarian hotspots in Africa today, the UN calls on the international community to increase financial aid and necessary means to prevent famine disasters.
According to Dujarric, the call not only aims to urge immediate relief action but also serves as a reminder of the connection between regional stability and global responsibility.
