We are confronting some of the greatest challenges of our time. In 2015:

People

 MILLION

people in need of humanitarian assistance

People forced to flee

 MILLION

people forced from their homes

Globe

 COUNTRIES

affected

Finance

$  BILLION

needed

In 2015, the international community showed that it is possible to come together and tackle global challenges such as poverty and climate change, and to create a better world for future generations.


Now it is time to turn promises into action for this generation, and uphold people’s safety, dignity and the right to thrive.

This is why the United Nations Secretary-General has called for the first ever World Humanitarian Summit: to reaffirm our commitment to humanity and chart a course for change.

World Humanitarian Summit
ISTANBUL, 23-24 MAY 2016

The Secretary-General’s Agenda for Humanity calls on global leaders to commit to five core responsibilities in the name of our shared humanity.

CORE RESPONSIBILITY 1

Global leadership to prevent and end conflict

Preventing conflicts and finding political solutions to resolve them is our first and foremost responsibility to humanity.

80%
CONFLICTS DRIVE 80% OF ALL HUMANITARIAN NEEDS.

CORE RESPONSIBILITY 2

Uphold the norms that safeguard humanity

Every day, civilians are deliberately or indiscriminately killed in wars. We are witnessing the erosion of 150 years of international humanitarian law.

But even wars have limits: leaders must recommit to upholding the rules that protect humanity.

90%
90% OF PEOPLE KILLED OR INJURED BY THE USE OF EXPLOSIVE WEAPONS IN POPULATED AREAS ARE CIVILIANS

CORE RESPONSIBILITY 3

Leave no one behind

The World Humanitarian Summit is the first test of our commitment to transform the lives of those most at risk of being left behind.

This means reaching everyone and empowering all women, men, girls and boys to be agents of positive transformation. It means reducing displacement, supporting refugees and migrants, ending gaps in education and fighting to eradicate sexual and gender-based violence.

Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, global leaders adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and pledged to leave no one behind.

CORE RESPONSIBILITY 4

Change people's lives – from delivering aid to ending need

Success must now be measured by how people's vulnerability and risk are reduced, not by how needs are met year after year. Ending need will require three fundamental shifts in the way we work:

  • Reinforce, don't replace national systems
  • Anticipate, do not wait for crises
  • Transcend the humanitarian-development divide

Today: 43%
2030: 62%
Today, 43% of people live in fragile situations. By 2030 that number is estimated to climb to 62%.

CORE RESPONSIBILITY 5

Invest in humanity

Accepting and acting upon our shared responsibilities for humanity requires political, institutional and financial investment.

As a shift is needed from funding to financing that invests in local capacities, is risk-informed, invests in fragile situations and incentivizes collective outcomes. We must also reduce the funding gap for humanitarian needs.

0.4%
Only 0.4% of official development assistance spent on disaster preparedness in 2014.

THERE IS NO BETTER TIME THAN NOW.

I call upon global leaders to place humanity – the concern for the dignity, safety and well-being of our citizens – at the forefront of all policies, strategies and decision-making.

The World Humanitarian Summit must be for the people living on the frontline of humanity. They count on us. We cannot let them down.

UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY‑GENERAL

BAN KI‐MOON

One Humanity Shared Responsibility

Report of the United Nations Secretary‑General for the World Humanitarian Summit

United Nations

    Photo credits

  • Slide 1: SOMALIA, Gangale/UNICEF
  • Slide 3, first: HAITI, Marco Dormino/UNICEF/UN Photo
  • Slide 3, second: SYRIA, Mackenzie Knowles-Coursin/IRIN
  • Slide 4: Ban Ki-Moon, Mark Garten/UN Photo
  • Slide 11: PAKISTAN, Warrick Page/UNICEF
  • Slide 12: Ban Ki-Moon, Rick Bajornas/UN Photo

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