World Humanitarian Day 2011
Key Messages
• Every year, disasters cause immense suffering for millions of people – usually
the worldʼs poorest, most marginalized and vulnerable individuals. Humanitarian
aid workers strive to provide life-saving assistance and long term rehabilitation to
disaster-affected communities, regardless of where they are in the world and
without discrimination based on nationality, social group, religion, sex, race or
any other factor.
• Humanitarian aid is based on a number of founding principles, including
humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence. Humanitarian aid workers
should be respected, and be able to access those in need in order to provide vital
assistance.
• Humanitarian aid workers are national and international, male and female, and
reflect all cultures and backgrounds. The majority come from the countries in
which they work. Strong, professional and independent local partners are fully
involved in all humanitarian responses.
• Everyone can be a humanitarian. People affected by disasters are often the first
to help their own communities following a disaster. Communities, local partner
organizations, international organizations and the general public can build a
chain of solidarity to support communities in responding to and recovering from
disasters.
• Responding to emergencies is only one aspect of humanitarian work.
Humanitarian workers also support communities to rebuild their lives after
disasters, to become more resilient to future crises, to advocate for their voices to
be heard, and to build lasting and sustainable peace in areas of conflict.
• Today, the most pressing humanitarian crisis in the world is unfolding in the Horn
of Africa. Famine has spread in Somalia, including Mogadishu, and threatens to
expand throughout the south. Too many people are dying. 12.4 million people in
Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti urgently need our help, and the numbers
are increasing. Our partners continue to work hard on the ground to save lives.
Their commitment must be matched by donors, the private sector and individuals
alike.
