GENEVA / GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN OVERVIEW 2017

The United Nations is appealing for a record amount of $22.2 billion for its humanitarian operations in 2017, which is needed to help 93 million of the most vulnerable people in 33 countries. UNTV CH

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:03:10
• Production Date: 5 December 2016
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: STEPHEN O'BRIEN
• Corporate Name: OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS - OCHA
• Subject Topical: HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
• MAMS Id: 1788110
• Parent Id: 1788110
• Alternate Title: unifeed161205a

Description

STORY: GENEVA / GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN OVERVIEW 2017
TRT: 03:10
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 5 DECEMBER 2016 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

Shotlist

1. Exterior, Palais des Nations
2. Wide shot, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator:
“I am launching today on behalf of the United Nations and hundreds of our humanitarian partners across the world the Global Humanitarian Overview for 2017. This appeal, appeal 2017, comprising strategic and coordinated response plan covering 33 countries is calling for 22, 2 Billion US Dollars, the highest amount we have ever requested”.
4. Close up, Global Humanitarian Overview 2017
5. Med shot, journalists
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Kate Halff, Executive Committee of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (SCHR):
“Part of the reason we have such a gap, such a high level of need, is another extremely worrying trend: the fact that in a away humanitarian action has de facto become a substitute for any meaningful political action to prevent and end crisis. The majority of the situation in this appeal are protracted conflict situations and we should never never forget that humanitarian action cannot be a substitute for political action. We are not going to resolve this crisis through humanitarian action”.
7. Medium shot, journalists
8. Wide shot, panel with audience
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator:
”We face a time of immense global suffering and fear. The scale of humanitarian deprivation today is greater than at any time since the United Nations was founded. Despite success elsewhere more and more people are trapped in a cycle of vulnerability and need, protracted conflicts last longer, sometimes decades as political solutions are nowhere to be found”.
10. Close up, Poster Global Humanitarian Overview 2017
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator:
”This is an increase of 10 percent since last year and of 700 percent since 1992. That is 25 years ago when the General Assembly passed the landmark resolution 46 182 still as relevant today.“
12. Wide shot, audience
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator:
”Funding for 2017 will translate into concrete action such as life-saving food assistance for the people of the brink of starvation in the Lake Chad Basin and South Sudan, protection of the most vulnerable people fleeing the conflict in Syria and Iraq, vital health and medical care in Yemen, education for children whose schooling is disrupted by El Nino, psycho social support and protection for 439, 000 children living in Libya, health services to some 6 and half million people in Nigeria and of course much, much more”.
14. Med shot, panel

Storyline

The United Nations is appealing for a record amount of $22.2 billion for its humanitarian operations in 2017, which is needed to help 93 million of the most vulnerable people in 33 countries.

The appeal is the largest request by the organization since the yearly call was established in 1991.

UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien said at a press briefing in Geneva “this appeal, appeal 2017, comprising strategic and coordinated response plan covering 33 countries is calling for 22, 2 Billion US Dollars, the highest amount we have ever requested”.

The world is facing a state of humanitarian crisis not seen since the Second World War. Today's humanitarian appeal is 700% higher compared to the first inter-agency appeal 25 years ago.

According to the UN humanitarian chief 80 percent of the needs stemmed from man-made conflicts, such as those in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Nigeria and South Sudan.

For Kate Halff, Executive Committee of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (SCHR) part of the reason for “such a high level of need, is another extremely worrying trend: the fact that in a away humanitarian action has de facto become a substitute for any meaningful political action to prevent and end crisis”.
She added that “the majority of the situations in this appeal are protracted conflict situations and we should never, never forget that humanitarian action cannot be a substitute for political action. We are not going to resolve this crisis through humanitarian action”.

At the same time, the impact of El Nino triggered droughts, floods and extreme weather is pushing vulnerable communities to the brink of survival.

During a high-level panel called “Investing in Humanity", moderated by Diplomatic Editor James Bays from Al Jazeera International, the global humanitarian needs were addressed.

O’Brien said that ”we face a time of immense global suffering and fear. The scale of humanitarian deprivation today is greater than at any time since the United Nations was founded. Despite success elsewhere more and more people are trapped in a cycle of vulnerability and need, protracted conflicts last longer, sometimes decades as political solutions are nowhere to be found”.

According to O’Brien the collective plans to meet people’s needs are ready. He said that ”funding for 2017 will translate into concrete action such as life-saving food assistance for the people of the brink of starvation in the Lake Chad Basin and South Sudan, protection of the most vulnerable people fleeing the conflict in Syria and Iraq, vital health and medical care in Yemen, education for children whose schooling is disrupted by El Nino, psycho social support and protection for 439, 000 children living in Libya, health services to some 6 and half million people in Nigeria and of course much much more”.

The humanitarian appeal is the culmination of a global effort to asses needs and decide collective response strategies by hundreds of organisations delivering food, shelter, health care, protection, emergency education to people in conflict – and disaster- affected regions.