World Humanitarian Day:UN declares 2023 deadliest year for aid workers
CHIGOZIE AMADI
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Monday that 2023 was the deadliest year for humanitarian workers than ever recorded before.
Countries across the globe yesterday 19th August celebrated the World Humanitarian Day.
A release on the UN website disclosed this, adding that 2024 is potentially shaping up to be even more perilous.
The office posted on X, via its handle #humdata, on Monday, “2023 was the deadliest year for aid workers ever recorded, with the number of fatalities more than double the annual average, according to data shared by @humoutcome #ActForHumanity.”
It read, “The Humanitarian Access SCORE Report: Gaza – the first six months (March 2024) estimated that more than 30,000 civilian deaths have included over 150 aid workers, an unprecedented number for a single context in such a short period.
“The 2024 Global Humanitarian Overview requires $48.65 billion to assist 186.5 million people in need. As of end of July 2024, reported GHO funding amounts to $12.26 billion or 11 per cent less than last year at the same time.
“From OPT to Sudan to Myanmar and beyond, the first half of 2024 was characterized by attacks against health, education and water and sanitation facilities that left millions of people without access to the services they need to survive. (Global Humanitarian Overview 2024)
“In 2023, the number of aid workers killed more than doubled in two years: from 118 in 2022 to 261 in 2023. (OCHA)
It revealed further in 2023, 78 aid workers were kidnapped and 196 wounded worldwide.
“In 2023, the overwhelming majority of humanitarian staff killed or injured are national humanitarian workers. (International NGO Safety Organisation).
“Of the aid workers who died, 96% were national staff and 4% were international (expatriate) staff – more than half (47%) were staff of national NGOs.
“Data for 2023 in the Aid Worker Security Database shows that South Sudan has been the most dangerous place for aid workers for several consecutive years. Sudan is a close second (as of 17 August 2013).”
