For the first time, Burkina Faso tops the list of the world’s ten most neglected displacement crises, according to a new report from the humanitarian organization Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). Releasing the analysis today, the nongovernmental organization (NGO) warned that redirection of aid and attention towards Ukraine has increased neglect of some of the world’s most vulnerable people.
“Neglect is a choice – that millions of displaced people are cast aside year after year without the support and resources they so desperately need is not inevitable,” said Jan Egeland, NRC’s Secretary General.
Source: Jacques BOUDA/NRC
The goal of the annual NRC report is to draw attention to the plight of people who receive no or inadequate aid, whose suffering rarely makes international headlines, and who are never the focus of international diplomatic efforts. The annual list of neglected displacement crises is based on three criteria: lack of humanitarian funding, lack of media attention, and a lack of international political and diplomatic initiatives.
The crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo, DRC) ranks second this year, having appeared first or second on the list every year since its inception seven years ago. Colombia, Sudan, and Venezuela follow in this grim ranking. Colombia and El Salvador appear in this report for the first time this year. Last year, the listing of crises comprised only countries on the African continent.
The report is drawn from analysis of 39 displacement crises worldwide. The NRC’S full list in order this year is: (1) Burkina Faso, (2) DR Congo, (3) Colombia, (4) Sudan, (5) Venezuela, (6) Burundi, (7) Cameroon, (8) Mali, (9) El Salvador, (10) Ethiopia.
Burkina Faso’s decline since the crisis broke out five years ago has been swift and devastating. In 2022, 3.5 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance in Burkina Faso – by the start of 2023, this number has skyrocketed to 4.9 million people.
More than 2 million people have been forced to flee their homes, and nearly a quarter of the population in Burkina Faso now requires humanitarian aid. Across the country, 800,000 people are living in areas under blockade by armed groups, where they have no access to even basic services. The situation is increasingly dire, with some people forced to eat leaves to survive.
“We must do more to end the suffering in Burkina Faso before despair becomes entrenched and it is added to the growing list of protracted crises. That this crisis is already so deeply neglected shows a failure of the international system to react to newly emerging crises, as it also fails those lost in the shadows for decades. Ultimately, greater investment in diplomatic solutions is needed if we hope to pull crises off this list,” said Egeland.
According to the report, more than five times more news articles were written about the Ukrainian displacement crisis last year than about all the world’s ten most neglected crises in total. For every dollar raised per person in need in Ukraine in 2022, just 25 cents were raised per person in need across the world’s ten most neglected crises.
The NGO said 375,000 articles in total were written in the English language media about the world’s ten most neglected displacement crises last year, according to statistics from the Meltwater Group. In comparison, 1.98 million articles were written in English about the displacement crises in Ukraine during the same period.
“The powerful response to the suffering inflicted by the war in Ukraine demonstrated what the world can deliver for people in need. Political action for Ukrainians has been impactful and swift, borders kept open, funding plenty, and media coverage extensive”, NRC’s Secretary General said.
“Those in power need to show the same humanity towards people affected by crises in places such as Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”
According to the analysis, the repeated warnings of increased disparity due to the reallocation of resources to the Ukraine response have now become reality. The redirection of a large amount of aid money towards Ukraine and towards hosting refugees in donor countries means that many crises have seen a drop in assistance, despite growing needs.
“The world has failed to support the most vulnerable, but this can be reversed. The lives of millions of people suffering in silence can improve, if funding and resources are allocated based on need, not geopolitical interest, and media headlines of the day,” said Egeland.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), last year the gap between what was needed and what was delivered in humanitarian assistance was 43 percent ($22.15 billion). And not all countries contribute to the financing. The bulk of the funding - more than 80 percent - is provided by just ten countries or international organizations. These include some of the world's most powerful economies, but by no means all.
Many of the largest economies worldwide do not participate at all and numerous others participate only marginally, resulting in the continued suffering of millions of people. When far too little money is raised, humanitarian organizations are forced to decide to whom to allocate the scarce funds available.
“We need donors to increase support and new donor countries to step up to share responsibility”, Egeland added.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is an independent humanitarian organization helping people forced to flee. Its headquarters are located in Oslo, Norway. The non-governmental organization protects displaced people and supports them. Founded in 1946, the Norwegian Refugee Council started its relief efforts after World War Two and is currently one of the largest NGOs worldwide supporting refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs).
The NRC's focus is the provision of urgent humanitarian aid during the emergency stage of a conflict or natural disaster. Today, the Norwegian Refugee Council works in new and protracted crises across 40 countries. In 2022, the humanitarian organization assisted almost 10 million people worldwide.
Further information
Full text: The world's most neglected displacement crises in 2022, report, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), released June 1, 2023
https://www.nrc.no/the-worlds-most-neglected-displacement-crises-in-2022/