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Friday March 29, 2024

Leaving no one behind through local humanitarian actions

By Khalid bin Majeed
April 25, 2019

Natural or manmade disasters are sudden extreme events causing serious disruption to the functioning of a community or a society.

Though they have been stalking humankind since time immemorial, the dramatic increase and damage caused by them in the recent past, have become a cause of prime national and international concern.

Over the past decade, the number of natural and manmade disasters globally has increased inexorably. From 1994 to 1998, reported disasters averaged at about 420 per year but from 1999 to 2003, this figure went up to an average of over 700 disaster events per year showing an increase of about 60 per cent over the previous years.

Disasters appear in shape of earthquakes due to sudden movement of tectonic plates, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods from abnormal weather patterns, continued dry conditions leading to prolonged droughts, atmospheric disturbances, cyclones, fires, internal military conflicts, and wars.

Their impact appears in shape of massive killing of human populations, loss of agricultural lands, livelihood and shelter, poverty, hunger, disease breakout, internal displacements & migrations and associated crimes like gang wars, abductions, kidnapping, rapes, thefts, and murders.

In such disturbing scenarios, the widespread negative impact often exceeds the affected countries ability to effectively cope with the humanitarian response. Often, as seen during the Cashmere earthquake or the massive Indus floods, or most recently during the devastating cyclone that left millions homeless in Mocambique, Zimbabawe and Malawi these massive disasters throw up gigantic challenges to both National Authorities and the international Humanitarian community when come to the rescue of the millions affected by these disasters.

As a result, humanitarian organizations like the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies [IFRC] and its 191 National Societies line up to provide assistance to tens of millions every year mobilising billions of dollars into the disaster-hit countries through direct humanitarian action, through national civil society actors or by supporting specialized government agencies.

A major part of this international assistance comes in the form of trained manpower, state-of-the-art equipment, health specialists, doctors, paramedics, trained volunteers and military personnel for assistance in relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

The United Nations, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and many International NGO’s launch appeals for donations in aid of the disaster-hit countries, to which the general public and governments usually respond. But while massive disasters attract funding, the hundreds of smaller or medium sized ones often go unsupported leaving millions of people destitute and without aid.