GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES
By Vincent Lyn
The following are humanitarian emergencies around the world:
Ethiopia Tigray Emergency
A full-scale humanitarian crisis is unfolding as thousands of refugees flee ongoing fighting in Ethiopia’s Tigray region to seek safety in eastern Sudan. Since the violence began in early-November 2020, refugees have been arriving at remote border points that take hours to reach from the nearest towns in Sudan. Many are women and children. Most left with barely any belongings and arrived exhausted from walking long distances over harsh terrain. With no end in sight to the conflict the steady stream of daily arrivals is overwhelming the current capacity to provide aid. More support is urgently needed. Last updated statistics were end of 2020. 45,500 refugees from Ethiopia’s Tigray who have fled into Sudan. 96,000 refugees from Eritrea hosted in the Tigray region. 100,000 internally displaced people in the Tigray region before the ongoing crisis.
“We did not know what was going on when we heard the gun shots. Many people were killed — we could see 10, twenty bodies lying on the ground. That’s when we decided to leave. I walked until my legs were injured and bleeding. I thank God that we are safe here and we have something to eat.” – Gannite, Ethiopian refugee woman who fled into Sudan from clashes in the Tigray region
More than 3,000 people have been fleeing each day from Ethiopia’s Tigray region into eastern Sudan — an influx unseen over the last two decades in this part of the country. Refugees are arriving in remote areas that have very little infrastructure. The majority have crossed from Ethiopia into Sudan through Hamdayet border point in Kassala State and others at Lugdi in Gedaref State. It takes at least a six-hour drive from the nearest big town, making it difficult to quickly deliver food and supplies.
The transit centers at the border areas are overcrowded due to the sheer number of arrivals from Tigray, increasing the risk of disease including COVID-19. 9,000 people have been transferred to the first refugee settlement side identified by the government; there is a critical need to identify more sites so that refugees can be relocated away from the border and can access assistance and services. Within Ethiopia itself, the potential for further displacement inside the country is growing by the day. The lack of electricity, telecommunications and access to fuel and cash severely hampers any humanitarian response.
Democratic Republic of Congo Emergency
Fresh waves from unrest in the DRC have displaced an estimated 5 million people between 2017 and 2019 namely in the Kasai, Tanganyika, Ituri, and Kivu regions. Hundreds of thousands more have fled to Angola, Zambia and other neighboring countries. People are fleeing their homes at a worrying pace, as worsening violence destroys lives and livelihoods across the country. Over 918,000 DRC refugees and asylum-seekers are being hosted in African countries. 5.01 million people displaced indie DRC. Almost 524,000 refugees and 3,188 asylum-seekers in the DRC. Hopes soared after a long and costly civil war was brought to an end in 2003, but the nation has instead seen sporadic waves of fighting — especially in the Eastern parts of the country. Since 2016, a new wave of violence also affected the DRC’s Kasai region, a vast area in the south and center of the country. Now, thousands of civilians are struggling for survival.
Although many people have returned to areas in the Kasai region and elsewhere, they have often found their property, businesses and schools in ruins, and family members killed. Human rights violations are still widespread, including physical mutilation, killings, sexual violence, arbitrary arrest and detention in inhumane conditions.
“Armed men killed my wife and three of our children. I don’t know why.” — Kadima Kabenge, mine worker who fled attacks in Kasai Province
While these conflicts have forced many Congolese to flee their homes, the country also hosts over half a million refugees from neighboring countries. It continues to see new arrivals from Burundi, the Central African Republic and South Sudan. The risk of further displacement is high, as conflicts affect many areas. Protection needs, particularly for the most vulnerable, are enormous, and the challenges of getting aid to those in need are increasing. Strengthening public health, sanitation and water supplies to prevent diseases remains vital.
Iraq Emergency
Millions of Iraqis have been forced to abandon their homes after decade of conflict and violence. Terrified, many fled; with just the clothes on their backs. Now, with their limited financial resources; exhausted by basic accommodation and food, they are in desperate need of emergency aid.
“We had no choice other than to leave because it was not safe for our children. We left everything — our clothes, our furniture, even our food.” — Nafa Jihad, 40, father
More than 3 million Iraqis have been displaced across the country since the start of 2014 and over 260,000 are refugees in other countries. Mass executions, systematic rape and horrendous acts of violence are widespread, and human rights and rule of law are under constant attack. It is estimated that over 11 million Iraqis are currently in need of humanitarian assistance. More than 1.5 million people have taken refuge in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where one in every four is either a refugee or an internally displaced person. Communities, authorities and infrastructure are at breaking point.
Rohingya Emergency
Rohingya refugees fled violence in Myanmar at a staggering rate in 2017- and the numbers keep growing. At the peak of the crisis, thousands were crossing into Bangladesh daily. Most walked for days through jungles and mountains, or braved dangerous sea voyages across the Bay of Bengal. They arrived exhausted, hungry and sick — in need of international protection and humanitarian assistance.
Over a million Rohingya refugees have fled violence in Myanmar in successive waves of displacement since the early 1990s. Follow the crisis here.
The Rohingya are a stateless Muslim minority in Myanmar. The latest exodus began on 25 August 2017, when violence broke out in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, driving more than 742,000 to seek refuge in Bangladesh. Most arrived in the first three months of the crisis. An estimated 12,000 reached Bangladesh during the first half of 2018. The vast majority reaching Bangladesh are women and children, and more than 40 per cent are under age 12. Many others are elderly people requiring additional aid and protection. They have nothing and need everything.
Nearly all who arrived during the influx have sought shelter in and around the refugee settlements of Kutupalong and Nayapara in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district. Some have joined relatives there. The enormous scale of the influx is putting immense pressure on the Bangladeshi host community and existing facilities and services.
“They burnt our house and drove us out by shooting. We walked for three days through the jungle.” — Mohammed, who fled to Bangladesh with his family of seven, including a baby born along the way
New spontaneous settlements sprouted overnight, raising concerns over the lack of adequate shelter, water and sanitation, access to basic services, and general protection considerations such as safety for women and girls. The Kutupalong refugee settlement has grown to become the largest of its kind in the world, with more than 600,000 people living in an area of just 13 square kilometers, stretching infrastructure and services to their limits.
The Bangladesh government has responded generously throughout the latest crisis. Local Bangladeshi villages have also taken in the new arrivals. They spared no effort to help, straining their already limited resources. The humanitarian response in Bangladesh remains focused on meeting the massive humanitarian needs and on mitigating the impact of the seasonal monsoon rains. However, additional international support is urgently needed to step up the assistance from purely humanitarian and day-to-day support towards addressing medium-term challenges, including resilience, education, registration, and programs to protect the most vulnerable refugees — including children, women and persons with specific needs.
South Sudan Emergency
Since December 2013, brutal conflict in South Sudan has claimed tens of thousands of lives and driven nearly four million people from their homes. While many remain displaced inside the country, more than two million have fled to neighboring countries in a desperate bid to reach safety.
The situation in South Sudan and neighboring countries has quickly escalated into a full-blown humanitarian emergency. Although we are doing all we can to provide relief and life-saving shelter with limited resources, displacement in the region is expected to rise until a political solution is found.
“The journey was so hard. The sun was very hot and we had trouble finding food and water. Our uncle decided to turn back but we continued on because we wanted to go to school.” — Kenyi, 17, is among more than 5,000 unaccompanied South Sudanese refugee children who have arrived in Uganda
The majority of the refugees are women and children, many of whom flee across the border alone. Often, they arrive weak and malnourished. When the rainy season comes, their needs are compounded by flooding, food shortages and disease. Inside South Sudan, nearly two million people are displaced while outside the country there are now over two million South Sudanese refugees, mainly in Ethiopia, Sudan, and Uganda. Many fear imminent attack or struggle with food insecurity.
“This conflict must end, and the world must rally to support the millions forced to flee their homes in South Sudan.” — Arnauld Akodjenou, Regional Refugee Coordinator and Special Advisor on the South Sudan Situation
Education, health and food supplies are all severely underfunded, exacting a heavy toll on women and children, who account for 83 percent of the refugees. The livelihoods, and education, for which levels among South Sudanese children and young adults are some of the lowest in the world.
Venezuela Situation
People continue to leave Venezuela to escape violence, insecurity and threats as well as lack of food, medicine and essential services. With over 5 million Venezuelans now living abroad, the vast majority in countries within Latin America and the Caribbean, this has become one of the largest displacement crisis in the world. Ongoing political, human rights and socio-economic developments in Venezuela compel growing numbers of children, women and men to leave for neighboring countries and beyond. Many arrive scared, tired and in dire need of assistance.
“We left everything in Venezuela. We don’t have a place to live or sleep and have nothing to eat.” — Nayebis Carolina Figuera, a 34-year-old from Venezuela who fled to neighbouring Brazil
In the past, Venezuela hosted thousands of refugees from the region and other parts of the world. Now the number of Venezuelans compelled to leave their homes continues to increase, and a significant number of them are in need of international protection. Over 4 million Venezuelans have left their country to date, according to data from governments receiving them, making this among the world’s biggest recent displacement crises.
There has been an 8,000 per cent increase in the number of Venezuelans seeking refugee status worldwide since 2014, principally in the Americas. Many Venezuelans who would meet the criteria are not registering for refugee procedures and are instead opting for alternative legal forms of stay, which are easier and faster to obtain and allow access to work, education and social services. However, hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans remain without any documentation or permission to stay regularly in nearby countries, and therefore lack guaranteed access to basic rights. This makes them particularly vulnerable to labour and sexual exploitation, trafficking, violence, discrimination and xenophobia.
The majority of refugees and migrants from Venezuela arriving in neighboring countries are families with children, pregnant women, elderly people and people with disabilities. Often obliged to take irregular routes to reach safety, they may fall prey to smugglers, traffickers and irregular armed groups. As more and more families arrive with fewer and fewer resources, they are in immediate need of documentation, protection, shelter, food and medicine. Host countries and communities in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru and the southern Caribbean have been generously welcoming them, but are increasingly overstretched and some are reaching a saturation point.
“We walked for 11 days and had to sleep outside. We left because they threatened to kill us. My brother was killed… They almost killed me.” — Ana, Venezuelan woman in Ecuador
Burundi Situation
Political unrest in Burundi took a deadly turn in 2015 after the president announced plans to seek a third term. Street protests led to violent clashes, and hundreds of thousands fled to nearby countries in search of safety. The people of Burundi are facing a humanitarian crisis marked by economic decline, extreme food insecurity and a disease outbreak. While the worst of the violence has eased, the situation remains fragile, with an unresolved political situation and continued displacement within and outside the country.
Burundian refugees in Tanzania, Rwanda and the DRC arrive to find camps full and only temporary shelters available. Health centers are struggling to cope with huge numbers of patients. Education is very basic, and children lack sufficient learning materials; hundreds of children in Tanzania attend classes under trees.
“Burundi’s refugees are being forgotten. The world needs to urgently help these refugees and the countries hosting them.” — Catherine Wiesner, Regional Refugee Coordinator and Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework Champion for the Burundi situation
Central African Republic Situation
The Central African Republic (CAR) is one of the world’s poorest countries and has been among the 10 most under-reported humanitarian crises for 5 years in a row. It has been troubled by unrest for years, but since May 2017, fresh and fierce clashes between armed groups have wrought increasing suffering, deaths and destruction of property. Violence and insecurity following the December 2020 general election has forced tens of thousands more to flee.
“I lost everything: my home, my flesh, my identity. My kids sleep on the floor.” — Zainaba, widowed mother of four displaced in Bangui
Back in December 2013, hundreds of thousands of people were forced to flee their homes as violence spread in the Central African Republic (CAR), with armed groups controlling parts of the country. Today, CAR continues to experience sporadic surges of violence forcing over 632,108 CAR refugees to remain in neighboring Cameroon, Chad, DRC and the Republic of Congo, with smaller numbers in Sudan and South Sudan. In addition to the refugees, 630,834 people have been forced to flee inside the country.
CAR had been experiencing a gradual transition towards peace and stability since late 2016, when both refugees and internally displaced people started to go back home. Now, insecurity is plaguing areas in the centre, northwest, east and south-east of CAR — some not previously affected by violence. Thousands of people walk for weeks and hide in the forests in a desperate bid to escape, sometimes with nothing to eat or drink. Those who arrive at sites for the displaced have witnessed traumatic scenes of violence, and malnutrition rates have risen to serious levels.
In what is one of the most poorly funded emergency situations globally, many people lack even basic survival assistance. Food, health, shelter, and water and sanitation are all primary concerns for refugees living outside formal sites and for the communities hosting them.
Displacement in Central America
The number of refugees and asylum-seekers from the North of Central America (NCA) has soared in the last five years. Worsening crime and violence fueled by drug cartels and gangs accounts for much of the increase, along with fragile institutions, and increasing inequalities.In Nicaragua, political persecution and human rights violations have been driving a new large-scale displacement.
The stark choice for thousands of families and young women and men in Central America now is to leave or die. They are compelled to leave their homes and risk their lives undertaking dangerous journeys, only to search for a safe place to live. They often arrive only with the clothes they are wearing, traumatized and in need of urgent support.
“We had our own bakery in El Salvador, until gangs arrived, and we could no longer sell bread. We were threatened out of our country.” — Raul*, 65, fled with his family from El Salvador to neighboring Guatemala
Growing numbers of people in Central America are being forced to leave their homes. Worldwide, there are now around 470,000 refugees and asylum-seekers from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras — a figure that registered an increase of 33% as compared to 2018. Compounded by socio-economic instability and poverty, they are escaping gang violence, threats, extortion, recruitment into gangs or prostitution, as well as sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people — collectively known as LGBTI — are also fleeing persecution. Many more are displaced more than once within their own countries or have been deported back home, often into dangerous situations.
Political turmoil in Nicaragua since April 2018 has meanwhile led tens of thousands of people to flee violence and human rights violations, the majority into neighboring Costa Rica. Two years into the crisis, more than 102,000 Nicaraguans have left their country in search of a safe haven.
Overall, more than 890,000 people from the NCA and Nicaragua have been uprooted from their homes. Host countries and communities in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Panama, have been doing their best, to welcome those forced to flee. With new policies to regularize their stay and allow for their speedy integration, thousands of people have been able to begin their lives anew. Yet the growing number of people seeking safety is over-stretching their hosts’ capacity to cope, straining limited services that also serve the local population.
The escalating situation of chronic violence and insecurity, coupled with COVID19-related restrictions, is exacerbating hardship and persecution for tens of thousands of people in Central America, who now have limited means of finding protection and making ends meet.
“This project to me means hope. Even though we had to leave our country, we have the chance to make one dream come true in our lives.” — Isabel, 56, from Honduras who is becoming self-reliant thanks to a Government and private-sector employability project in Guatemala
Nigeria Emergency
The Boko Haram insurgency has displaced nearly 2.4 million people in the Lake Chad Basin. Although the Nigerian military has regained control in parts of the country’s north-east, civilians in Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger continue to be affected by grave violations of human rights, widespread sexual and gender-based violence, forced recruitment and suicide bombings.
“Every day we pray for protection and peace.” — Boussam Abdulahi, Nigerian refugee
In 2021, the Nigerian refugee crisis will be going into its seventh year. Since violent attacks of the Islamist group Boko Haram started to spill over Nigeria’s north-eastern frontier in 2014, Cameroon, Chad and Niger have been drawn into what has become a devastating regional conflict. To date, the Lake Chad Basin region is grappling with a complex humanitarian emergency. Over 3.2 million people are displaced, including over 2.9 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in north-eastern Nigeria, over 684,000 IDPs in Cameroon, Chad and Niger and 304,000 refugees in the four countries.
The crisis has been exacerbated by conflict-induced food insecurity and severe malnutrition, which have risen to critical levels in all four countries. Despite the efforts of Governments and humanitarian aid, some 12.5 million people remain in need of humanitarian assistance in the Lake Chad Basin region, with 5.3 million people remaining food insecure.
The challenges of protecting the displaced are compounded by the deteriorating security situation as well as socio-economic fragility, with communities in the Sahel region facing chronic poverty, a harsh climatic conditions, recurrent epidemics, poor infrastructure and limited access to basic services. The Nigerian military, together with the Multinational Joint Task Force, have driven extremists from many of the areas they once controlled, but these gains have been overshadowed by an increase of Boko Haram attacks in neighboring countries. Despite the return of Nigerian IDPs and refugees to accessible areas, the crisis remains acute.
Sahel Emergency
The Sahel is facing one of the fastest growing displacement crises in the world — and yet one of the most forgotten. Intense and largely indiscriminate violence perpetrated by armed actors against civilians have forced more than 2.9 million people to fell across the region both within countries and across borders. This deteriorating humanitarian and protection emergency by the impact of COVID-19, combined with the pre-existing challenges faced by the region, including climate change and food insecurity.
“The emergency is here, in the Sahel, where people are suffering, are being killed, women are being raped, children cannot go to school. Sahel is the place where we must intervene before this crisis becomes unmanageable.” -–Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees
The conflict continues to escalate, uninterrupted by the pandemic, especially in the Liptako-Gourma region, which borders Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. In Burkina Faso, more than one million people have been internally displaced, a four-fold increase in one year. The emergency is already affecting Mauritania and Chad and risks spilling over into the coastal countries of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Togo. Women and children are bearing the brunt of this crisis. Local communities have demonstrated remarkable generosity but are at a breaking point. National capacities are overwhelmed, and international support has been disproportionately dedicated to security assistance, with limited resources for urgently needed humanitarian and development activities.
The COVID-19 pandemic is exacerbating the situation and is now affecting areas hosting refugees and IDPs. The steady increase of infection rates indicates a looming emergency in a region where health structures have been targeted by insecurity. The immediate socio-economic impact will have longer-term consequences for food security, access to services and livelihoods throughout the region, disproportionately impacting displaced populations and the communities hosting them.
Syria Emergency
Over 13 million Syrians have fled their homes since 2011. More than 5.5 million are refugees in Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and other countries in the region. Millions of Syrians have escaped across borders, fleeing the bombs and bullets that have devastated their homes. Turkey hosts the largest number of registered Syrian refugees — currently 3.6 million. The vast majority of Syrian refugees in the neighboring countries live in urban areas, with around only 8 per cent accommodated in refugee camps.
In Lebanon, life is a daily struggle for more than a million Syrian refugees, who have little or no financial resources. Around 70 per cent live below the poverty line. There are no formal refugee camps and, as a result, Syrians are scattered throughout more than 2,100 urban and rural communities and locations, often sharing small basic lodgings with other refugee families in overcrowded conditions.
“They gave us biscuits, cheese, dates, dry meat — all very nice… And they gave us mats, blankets and kitchenware.” — Fayzeh, mother of three at Jordan’s Zaatari camp
In Jordan, over 655,000 men, women and children are currently trapped in exile. Approximately 80 per cent of them live outside camps, while more than 139,000 have found sanctuary at the camps of Za’atari and Azraq. Many have arrived with limited means to cover even basic needs, and those who could at first rely on savings or support from host families are now increasingly in need of help. It is estimated that 93 per cent of refugees in Jordan live below the poverty line. Iraq has also seen a growing number of Syrians arriving, hosting more than 246,000, while in Egypt UNHCR provides protection and assistance to more than 126,000. But although life in exile can be difficult, for Syrians still at home it is even harder.
“We felt maybe it’s our turn to die. But we didn’t want to die. So we made up our minds to leave.” — Sahar, 25, Syrian refugee in Lebanon
Yemen Emergency
A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Yemen, as millions flee their homes to escape a devastating conflict. Many face desperate conditions and struggle to survive as they search for safety, shelter and emergency aid.
“The world cannot afford to let Yemen slip into the abyss.” — Ayman Gharaibeh, UNHCR Representative too Yemen
Fighting in Yemen, already one of the poorest countries in the Middle East, has severely compounded needs arising from long years of poverty and insecurity. The worsening violence has disrupted millions of lives, resulting in widespread casualties and massive displacement, and the situation is rapidly deteriorating.
Civilians bear the brunt of the crisis, with 22.2 million Yemenis now in need of humanitarian assistance. Those forced to flee their homes are especially at risk. 2 million people now languish in desperate conditions, away from home and deprived of basic needs. The situation is so dire that almost 1 million displaced Yemenis have lost hope and tried to return home, even though it is not yet safe. Yemen is facing a humanitarian catastrophe. Without help, many more lives will be lost to violence, treatable illnesses or lack of food, water and shelter.
Vincent Lyn
CEO/Founder at We Can Save Children
Director of Creative Development at African Views Organization
Economic & Social Council at United Nations
Middle East Correspondent at Wall Street News Agency
Rescue & Recovery Specialist at International Confederation of Police & Security Experts