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Donor governments today pledged a record $ 932 million to UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency, for next year’s activities at its annual donation conference in Geneva. These generous initial pledges will enable UNHCR to continue providing lifesaving aid and protect the rights of nearly 80 million refugees, displaced persons and stateless people since the start of 2021. In all, donors have committed over $ 1.1 billion to UNHCR programs in 2021 and beyond, demonstrating strong solidarity with refugees and trust in UNHCR’s work.
Speaking at the conference, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who has just returned from Afghanistan and Sudan, said: “Refugees fleeing conflict, persecution and human rights violations need our support now more that never. We are encouraged by the commitments our donors have made today, which are a lifeline for millions of people who need help, hope and a home. “
To fulfill its responsibilities and meet critical humanitarian needs in 2021, UNHCR needs $ 9.070 billion. This includes $ 8.616 billion for its 2021 Global Appeal and another $ 455 million in additional needs for its COVID-19-related activities.
The key needs outlined in UNHCR’s 2021 Global Appeal cover operations in 135 countries, many of them old and new crises and conflicts that force people to flee. Recent examples include UNHCR’s emergency response for Ethiopian refugees fleeing to eastern Sudan. In the Sahel, millions of refugees and internally displaced people live in dire conditions in what is one of the most complex regional crises globally. Hundreds of thousands are fleeing brutal violence in northern Mozambique. The ongoing war in Yemen is taking a catastrophic toll on civilians, many of them displaced. In Europe, a reignited decade-long conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has caused further displacement of civilians. In Latin America, tens of thousands of Nicaraguans have fled a serious crisis that has resulted in violence and human rights violations.
In response to these and other crises, UNHCR’s key activities in 2021 focus on refugees and child protection, emergency preparedness and urgent deployment necessities, cash assistance for the most vulnerable, health and safety food, water and sanitation and nutritional support, housing, education, livelihoods, clean energy and environmental protection, as well as support for stateless persons.
The already challenging global refugee and humanitarian crisis was dramatically exacerbated in 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the inclusion of refugees in national public health responses and the work of UNHCR and other humanitarian agencies has helped to keep transmission rates among refugees at roughly the same level as those in host communities.
“These men, women and children cannot be left behind and we cannot allow the pandemic to distract us from meeting their growing needs as we seek solutions to their situation,” said Filippo Grandi, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “UNHCR urgently appeals to those who have the means to continue supporting the humanitarian response around the world.”
The coronavirus is having a devastating impact on millions of refugees, more than 85% of whom are hosted by developing countries that are now grappling with the severe economic impact of the pandemic. Refugees face loss of livelihoods, growing poverty and insufficient aid. They cannot feed their families or stay warm in the winter. Some are evicted from their shelters. Others are forced to sell their bodies or marry their children, falling prey to abuse and exploitation. The most desperate go down to self-harm or, worse in some cases, take their own lives. Unable to survive, some refugees are also returning prematurely to situations of conflict and danger.
As a result, UNHCR is reiterating its calls for the full inclusion of forcibly displaced persons in all national responses to the pandemic – from healthcare responses to access to vaccines to social safety nets.
Voluntary contributions make up nearly all of UNHCR’s funding. In addition to today’s pledges from donor governments, and in a sign of increasing diversification of support for the refugee cause, representatives of UNHCR’s national private sector partners announced their initial and unprecedented commitment of $ 275 million for 2021.
UNHCR is grateful for all contributions received, especially those providing flexible funding and multi-year support, which are essential to the organization’s ability to respond rapidly to new crises and address the needs of forcibly displaced persons and their guests.
At the end of this month, the United Nations Refugee Agency will celebrate seven decades of humanitarian work for which it has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize twice: in 1954 and 1981.
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