EU and Member States agree on common vision ahead of World Humanitarian Summit

Met dank overgenomen van Directoraat-Generaal Europese Civiele Bescherming en Humanitaire Operaties (ECHO) i, gepubliceerd op vrijdag 13 mei 2016.

At the first-ever World Humanitarian Summit taking place in ten days in Istanbul, Turkey, the EU i and its Member States will jointly call for a reshape of the global humanitarian system.

Investing in resilience, ensuring more efficient and effective financing, promoting respect of International Humanitarian Law and bridging the gap between the humanitarian and development work are among the key priorities for the EU.

As a major humanitarian donor and key policy-setter, the EU and its Member States will play a leading role at the upcoming Summit, when 5 000 humanitarian stakeholders coming from across the world will gather to make the overstretched humanitarian system fit for current and new challenges.

The World Humanitarian Summit is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the global community to strengthen and reshape humanitarian action for years to come. Some 50 world leaders, including Vice-President of the European Commission Kristalina Georgieva i, EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides i and EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica i, will attend the high-level meeting.

Read more about the EU's vision in the Council Conclusions adopted yesterday.

Background

During the past decade, the number of people affected by the ever-increasing scope and intensity of conflicts and natural disasters has almost doubled. Despite record contributions in recent years, humanitarian donors like the EU cannot fully respond to the huge humanitarian needs generated by today’s emergencies.

Against this background, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon i has called for the international community to gather at the first-ever World Humanitarian Summit. The European Commission has been actively involved in the preparations to the Summit from the outset, during which over 23 000 stakeholders such as governments, business, aid organisations, civil society, affected communities and youth groups were consulted.

Find out more about the event on the World Humanitarian Summit's website.