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On behalf of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and our 191-member National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, I am pleased to address the Security Council Ministerial Open Debate.
Our National Society volunteers from their local communities tell us that the climate crisis is the number one humanitarian crisis that communities face around the globe, threatening human security.
Currently, 90% of all disasters are climate and weather-related, resulting in the deaths of over 410,000 people in the last decade, and impacting 1.7 billion people.
The impacts of climate crisis are compounding other crises – food insecurity, disease outbreaks, water shortages and large population movements – reversing development gains thereby impacting global peace and security.
Although the climate crisis affects us all, the science and data shows that we are not all impacted equally. Our focus must be on the communities most impacted and at risk, especially those in fragile settings.
Mr/Madam President,
While we know that a one-size-fits-all solution to reducing climate risks does not exist,the IFRC proposes three important shifts to address the magnitude of the climate crisis before us:
Focus on community leadership, ownership and reach – Investing in large scale disaster risk reduction, climate mitigation and adaptation, at the community level, where it is most needed and has the greatest potential impact is essential.
Local organizations are critical to designing and implementing climate action, and channeling climate finance to the right places, to those most in need. They must drive the change.
Fill the financing gaps –Some 30 of the most climate vulnerable countries – a majority of which are fragile contexts – receive only $1 per person per year in climate adaptation funding.
We must change how we finance climate action.
There must be a more integrated approach to humanitarian, development, climate and peace financing, putting the needs of the communities at the center.
The funding must reach the local level to build and empower localinstitutional and responsecapacities and solutions. The empowered local communities form the foundation for peaceful societies.
Forecasting and anticipatory action –We all must scale upearly warningand early action systems that provide communities with information and funding to act before climate events become disasters.
This means giving local organizations more direct access to finance and decision-making processes through mechanisms like IFRC’s Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF), that provides direct funding to National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies who play a key role in protecting people from the impacts of climate change.
We all – whether from the humanitarian, development, climate or peace sectors – must work together to address both immediate needs and strengthen long-term resilience to prevent and alleviate human suffering and thereby contribute to the maintenance of human dignity and peace in the world.
Thank you.
It's hot and dryin N'Beika, a commune in Moudjeria, central Mauritania, with temperatures already rising above 40°C by late morning. It’s hard to believe that nine months ago, 90% of the commune was submerged by heavy rainfall and flooding.
Mohamed Lemine Ould Mohamed Moctar, a 65-year-old farmer and father of seven, looks out over his piece of land, his face distant, hoping for a good rainy season, this time.
"I didn't harvest anything last year. My whole sorghum field was ravaged by the floods. At least the year before, I was able to harvest a few small bags, despite the lack of rain", says Mohamed.
Here in Moudjeria, asin Guerrou and Barkeol, the two other departments most affected by food insecurity in Mauritania this year, most families depend on traditional farming and livestock rearing to get by—a situation that makes them highly dependent on rainfall.
For years, a lack of water had been the main obstacle to flourishing agriculture in this community nestled on a plateau some 100 metres above sea level. But last year's rains were much heavier than expected, causing flooding that wiped out people’s crops.
This flooding has put severe strain on people’s livelihoods and is plunging many families in Mauritania into food insecurity. According to theMarch 2023 Mauritania Harmonized Framework, close to 500,000 people are expected to be acutely food insecure in the current lean season between June and August 2023.
“Every day is battle for us to survive. Cereal, meat, and basic food stuff to feed my family are almost unaffordable since I lost my only hope for income in this past flood,” adds Mohamed.
Sadly, communities in Mauritania are not the only ones facing this problem. The Sahel Region in Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing one of the worst food insecurity crises in decades, affecting millions of people.
“It’s alarming to witness the deterioration in food security in the Sahel. Pre-existing conditions such as drought and floods, climatic shocks, regional and international conflicts and rising food and fuel prices are spiking hunger and malnutrition rates. Each time, it is the most vulnerable who suffer the consequences of a complex context, exacerbated by growing inequalities,” says Alexandre Claudon de Vernisy, head of the IFRC Cluster delegation for Cape Verde, Gambia, Mauritania and Senegal.
In response to this emergency, the IFRC launched an appeal for 215 million Swiss francs in October 2022 to support 7.6 million of the most food insecure people across 14 priority countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Mauritania is the latest country to join the regional appeal in May 2023, bringing the total number of countries to 15.
The Mauritanian Red Crescent (MRC) needs 2 million Swiss francs from this appeal to help more than 80,000 people like Mohamed affected by food insecurity in the communes of Barkeol, Guerrou and Moudjeria.
In the short term, this funding will be used to provide more than 2,700 families with cash assistance to help them get back on their feet. It will also enable MRC volunteers to provide community health services and malnutrition screenings to more than 2,500 families to meet their immediate health needs.
In the longer-term, the funding aims to boost the resilience of communities in Mauritania so they are better prepared for future climate shocks. The MRC will:
Set up three ‘Farmer Field Schools’ to teach climate-smart farming techniques—such assoil moisture conservation, use of appropriate seeds, and crop association—to hundreds of farmers, so they can have more successful and reliable yields.
Help 30 villages to set up village food security stocks by buying cereals after the harvest period so that the price is cheaper during the next lean season.
Support mother’s clubs in the region that help mothers to recognize and fight signs of malnutrition in their children.
"It’s a long and difficult lean season ahead of us. Without the Red Crescent’s help, there would be very littlehope for us," says Mohamed.
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For more information about this crisis and to donate to the IFRC’s emergency appeal,please visit our Africa: Hunger crisis page.
Mr Chairperson, Director General, Excellencies and colleagues,
On behalf of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and its 192-member Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, allow me to congratulate the World Health Organization on the occasion of its 75th anniversary.
Our presence here today is a testament to the vision of the Member State towards WHO’s constitution, who set for it the most difficult, as well as the most relevant objective: achievement of the highest attainable health standard for everyone, without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social status.
But it is also a testament to the WHO’s ability to adapt and grow in the face of disasters, war, and crisis, as well as an ever-shifting social, economic and environmental landscape.
As a humanitarian organization founded in 1919, IFRC have faced many of these challenges together with the WHO, and we can be sure that the next 75 years will continue to challenge our abilities. Today, our major challenge of equitable access to health care is more elusive than ever, an issue that can only be resolved through political commitments.
In that sense, perhaps the most relevant questions, looking ahead, is not what new challenges the next 75 years will bring, but how we will face them. Will we work in coordinated partnership to address the social determinants of health, or will we continue working in fragmented manner? Will our policies and actions be defined by communities and local actors or from places hundreds of kilometers away? And will we have the courage to invest in trusted, resilient, and quality health care, or continue to be essentially reactive?
Political and health leaders at this Assembly have opened many doors in the past two years to make way for meaningful change, and these are questions to reflect upon during this Assembly.
Thank you.
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More information about the Seventy-sixth World Health Assembly, including videos of the event, can be found on the World Health Organization (WHO) website here.
The IFRC is deeply concerned about the dissolution of our member National Society, the Nicaraguan Red Cross.
This situation may put at risk much-needed humanitarian activities in the country and the work of the staff and volunteers.
We are currently closely monitoring the situation, assessing the best way forward, and we will inform on our next steps based on that analysis.
For more information please [email protected]
Geneva, 10 May 2023 – The IFRC Governing Board renewed today in Geneva the mandate of Jagan Chapagain as Secretary General of the world’s largest humanitarian network for a second four-year term.
IFRC President, Francesco Rocca, said:
“We are all very proud of the work done by Jagan in recent years and we look forward to working with him in the future. He took the helm of the organization shortly before COVID-19 was declared a public health emergency. But despite those trying times, Jagan demonstrated visionary and able leadership and made impressive achievements within a very short period. Thanks to his leadership and the work we have done together, our organization is financially healthy and continues to deliver on its important humanitarian mandate.”
IFRC Secretary General, Jagan Chapagain, said:
“I am both honoured and humbled to have the trust of the IFRC’s Governing Board and of President Francesco Rocca. This comes with immense responsibility and there will be many challenges along the way, but we will work with agility and integrity to find solutions and build trust among the communities we serve.”
Mr Chapagain is from Nepal and has extensive experience in, and broad knowledge of, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
He brings to the role decades of experience in the humanitarian field, providing leadership to major crises around the world while advocating for actions that build community resilience and reduce their needs in the long term. He has championed the localization agenda that empowers local actors to lead their own development. He has extensive experience in building partnerships for a broad range of initiatives and in leading diverse workforces for meaningful humanitarian work.
An engineer by training, Jagan began his humanitarian journey as a youth volunteer with the Nepal Red Cross where he represented and advocated on behalf of communities.
Prior to being appointed Secretary General for the first time in December 2019, he served as Under Secretary General for Programmes and Operations and guided IFRC relief and development efforts around the world.
He was also previously Chief of Staff and Regional Director of the Asia Pacific region for the IFRC.
The IFRC is the world’s largest humanitarian network, comprising 192 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies working to save lives, build resilience, and promote dignity around the world.
For more information or to request an interview, please contact:
[email protected]
In Geneva: Tommaso Della Longa, +41 79 708 43 67
Human-caused climate change made the record-breaking heatwave in Spain, Portugal, Morocco and Algeria at least 100 times more likely and the heat would have been almost impossible without climate change, according to rapid attribution analysis by an international team of leading climate scientists as part of the World Weather Attribution group.
In late April, parts of southwestern Europe and North Africa experienced a massive heatwave that brought extremely high temperatures never previously recorded in the region at this time of the year, with temperatures reaching 36.9-41°C in the four countries. The event broke temperature records by a large margin, against the backdrop of an intense drought.
Across the world, climate change has made heatwaves more common, longer and hotter. To quantify the effect of climate change on these high temperatures, scientists analysed weather data and computer model simulations to compare the climate as it is today, after about 1.2°C of global warming since the late 1800s, with the climate of the past, following peer-reviewed methods. The analysis looked at the average of the maximum temperature for three consecutive days in April across southern Spain and Portugal, most of Morocco and the northwest part of Algeria.
The researchers found that climate change made the heatwave at least 100 times more likely, with temperatures up to 3.5°C hotter than they would have been without climate change. They calculated that the event is still unusual, even with the large increase in likelihood due to human-caused warming, indicating it would have been almost impossible without climate change.
As other analyses of extreme heat in Europe have found, extreme temperatures are increasing faster in the region than climate models have predicted, a question that is currently under intense research. Until overall greenhouse gas emissions are halted, global temperatures will continue to increase and events like these will become more frequent and severe. For example, if global mean temperatures rise an additional 0.8°C, to a total warming of 2°C, models show that a heatwave such as this one would be 1ºC hotter.
While people in the Mediterranean are no strangers to high temperatures, their occurrence in Aprilcombined with the ongoing drought likely increased impacts. The study was conducted by 10 researchers as part of the World Weather Attribution group, including scientists from universities and meteorological agencies in France, Morocco, the Netherlands and the UK.
Quotes
Fatima Driouech, Associate Professor at the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, said:“The intense heatwave came on top of a preexisting multi-year drought, exacerbating the lack of water in Western Mediterranean regions and threatening the 2023 crop yield. As the planet warms, these situations will become more frequent and call for long-term planning, including implementing sustainable agricultural models and effective water management policies."
Roop Singh, Senior Climate Risk Advisor at the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, said:“Early season heatwaves tend to be deadlier as people have not yet prepared their homes or acclimated to summer temperatures. In Spain, for example, we saw heatwave adaptation measures put in place earlier than usual, which is exactly the type of adaptive heat action we need to see more of to reduce preventable deaths from heat.”
Friederike Otto, Senior Lecturer in Climate Science at the Grantham Institute for Climate Change
and the Environment, said:“The Mediterranean is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change in Europe. The region is already experiencing a very intense and long lasting drought and these high temperatures at a time of the year when it should be raining is worsening the situation. Without rapidly stopping the burning of fossil fuels
and adaptation towards a hotter, drier climate, losses and damages in the region will continue to rise dramatically. ”
Sjoukje Philip, Researcher at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, said: "Temperature records have again been broken by a large margin, as in some other recent heatwaves around the world. The fact that temperature trends in the region are higher than what models predict shows that we need to better understand the regional effects of climate change so that we can adapt to even more extreme heat in the future."
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Click here to access the study.
World Weather Attribution (WWA) is an international collaboration that analyses and communicates the possible influence of climate change on extreme weather events, such as storms, extreme rainfall, heatwaves, cold spells, and droughts.
Previous studies by WWA include research that found that climate change exacerbated floods in Nigeria and other parts of West Africa this year. WWA studies have also shown that this year’s drought in the Northern Hemisphere was made more likely by climate change and that it increased the rainfall that led to Pakistan’s deadly flooding, but that it was not the main driver in Madagascar’s 2021 food crisis.
Henry caring for the wounded in Solferino, Hilda helping hurricane victims in Port Vila, Mohamed monitoring the nutritional condition of the inmates in Baidoa prison, Yulima teaching first aid to people with disabilities in Maracay, and Luna rescuing migrants on the shore of Ceuta – they, like many Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers around the world, offer care, a hand of compassion and a life-changing breath of humanity to those who are most vulnerable. #FromTheHeart
Today, on World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day, we celebrate the legacy of Henry Dunant – whose vision led to the creation of the worldwide Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement – and the countless volunteers who came after him. Their unwavering commitment and exemplary dedication to helping anyone in need, anywhere and to upholding our Fundamental Principles at all times – whether responding to natural hazards, climate crises, conflicts, health emergencies, displacement, or migration – is admired around the world.
We nonetheless face tremendous challenges in carrying out our humanitarian action in a world beset by uncertainty and so many complex and multi-dimensional crises.
International attention is diverted from protracted and low-visibility crises, and resources are lacking to ensure the continuity of aid to those most in need and sustain the local action of humanitarian organizations and workers who are closest to the affected communities.
Natural hazards, climatic disasters and health emergencies are multiplying and reaching unprecedented scale.
The parties involved in armed conflicts and violence often ignore some of the most basic rules of humanitarian law and hamper neutral and impartial humanitarian organizations’ access to vulnerable people – access that should be free and safe. While there are those who challenge humanitarian principles, principled humanitarian action is as vitally important as ever.
Our Red Cross and Red Crescent family is at the forefront of humanitarian assistance and ensuring protection for those who need it most. The world has increasingly seen how effective our Movement can be in addressing overlapping crises and providing principled humanitarian assistance. Our strength lies in our unity, our determination to carry forward the ideals of neutral, impartial, independent humanitarian action and our commitment to the humanitarian cause.
Today, we celebrate the millions of Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers and staff around the world, who every day in their respective countries, regions and communities carry forward the determination of Henry Dunant to provide hope and dignity in the midst of despair to people in vulnerable situations without distinction or thought of personal gain.
Happy World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day! #FromTheHeart
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Mirjana Spoljaric, ICRC President
Mercedes Babé, Standing Commission Chair
Francesco Rocca, IFRC President
It’s 8am on a peaceful Sunday morning in Copán Ruinas, a small, picturesque town in western Honduras that was formerly one of the most powerful cities in the Mayan empire.
Shopkeepers are starting to open their doors. A scattering of women and children play in the main square. And many locals – wearing their signature wide-brimmed hats – are heading out on their morning walks.
But one man stands out in his bright red vest and cap. A large Red Cross emblem and the words Cruz Roja Hondureña proudly emblazoned on the back. I watch for a moment as he chats to people in the village, who all seem to greet him warmly with a handshake or fist bump.
I catch up to him, say a friendly “¡Hola, amigo!” and learn his name is Stanley. A Red Cross volunteer for more than 22 years, he’s on his way to a meeting with fellow volunteers and staff from around their region. He invites me to visit the local branch later that afternoon to learn about what they do.
And so I did! And the welcome couldn’t have been warmer.
Over lunch, I learned that everyone had come together from across the region to share their stories, knowledge, and experiences of supporting their local communities through various crises and day-to-day challenges.
Let me tell you about three of the people I met: Mirian, Napoleón and Loany.
Mirian
Mirian is the proud President of the Copán branch and has been volunteering for more than 10 years. Her branch runs the only two ambulances in the whole town, meaning that when someone gets into trouble, it’s her team that answers the call.
She oversees far more than emergency health services, though. Her branch does a lot of work helping local people, including indigenous groups living in the surrounding hills and schoolchildren, to be prepared for crises – such as hurricanes and floods.
Her branch is also supporting the growing number of migrants passing through Honduras on their way northwards, including, amongst other things, through Humanitarian Service Points: strategically located spaces where migrants can access safe and reliable support on their journeys.
“I am motivated by humanitarianism, by seeing how the Red Cross is an organization full of love for others. That we are people willing to give everything. For me, it’s the best thing that ever happened to me – being a member of the Red Cross family,” says Mirian.
Napoleón
Napoleón is based in San Pedro Sula, Honduras’ second largest city. He’s a former cameraman who has been volunteering as a driver for the Honduran Red Cross for five years.
A couple of years ago, Napoleón was one of many Honduran Red Cross volunteers who responded to devastating hurricanes Eta and Iota that ravaged the region.
He describes driving a large rescue truck through flood water so deep his vehicle nearly washed away. Despite treacherous conditions, he was able to reach and help rescue many stranded people, their belongings, and pets. He also assisted with the massive recovery and reconstruction effort, helping to put people’s lives and homes back together again.
The pride Napoleón takes in volunteering is written all over his face. His smile beams from ear to ear as he talks about supporting his fellow volunteers and rallying them together during a crisis.
“I like being a volunteer because you donate part of your life and you share feelings in helping humanity. It makes you feel good, feel satisfied, to be able to help,” says Napoleón.
Loany
Loany is also based in San Pedro Sula, but her role is a little different. She’s not a volunteer, instead she’s employed by the Honduran Red Cross to help volunteers.
She works with local branches, like the one in Copán, to improve their governance, financial management, and resource mobilization, so that their volunteers can provide better care and support to their communities.
While it might not sound as impressive as wading through flood waters to rescue survivors, Loany’s work is no less important. Strong local branches are the bedrock of the IFRC network. Without them, we can’t provide the fast, effective and local support that communities in crisis really need.
With one year’s experience, Loany is a relative newcomer to the Red Cross family. I asked her what working for the Red Cross means to her and whether she plans to continue:
“For me it means love, because wanting to do things well, wanting to help other people who are vulnerable or at risk, makes us give the best of ourselves as people. Now that I’ve entered the world of the Red Cross, I don’t know if I’ll ever leave!,” she says.
At the end of the volunteer meeting, the group disbands, bidding each other fond farewells.
I walk back to the main square in Copán, thinking about a word we often use in the humanitarian sector: ‘localization’.
It’s a jargon term. But what does it really mean?
I realise that, to me, it means Mirian, Napoleón and Loany: three people working hard within their local communities to make life better, safer, and brighter for those around them.
And it means Stanley: a man treading the same familiar streets for years in his hometown wearing his Red Cross vest. A man known, trusted, and respected by his local community, there for them through good times and bad.
Malawi, 21 March 2023 -After passing through Southern Africa for the second time this month, Tropical Storm Freddy swept through Southern Malawi on 12 March 2023, with strong winds and heavy rains leaving the affected districts in a state of disaster and affecting the power supply throughout most of the country. Tropical Storm Freddy is set to be the longest tropical system since 1994, having weakened and re-intensified seven times over the last month.
The Malawi government has declared a state of disaster in 10 southern districts that have been hardest hit by the storm. A large number ofpeople are reported to have been affected, of which 101,648 households (approximately 508,244 people) have been displaced with 534 camps set to accommodate the displaced, according to reports from DoDMA. The death toll, which is currently at 499 (as of 20 March 2023), is expected to rise as 427 people are still unaccounted for since some areas remain cut off due to relentless rain and fierce wind.
McBain Kanongodza, Secretary General for the Malawi Red Cross Society said:
“We are grateful to the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies for the support through this emergency appeal. This support will go a long way to help the survivors recover from the shock of Tropical Cyclone Freddy devastation.”
Malawi Red Cross Society (MRCS) is on the ground, with volunteers working in dangerous conditions, primarily conducting search and rescue by land, and in rescue boats. Volunteers are providing first aid and psychosocial support to those affected. Non-food items are also being distributed by MRCS to evacuation centres and hospitals.
John Roche, Head of IFRC’s Delegation for Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe said:
“The destruction left behind by Tropical Storm Freddy, which has displaced large numbers is a major concern, as we are also tackling a widespread cholera outbreak at the same time. We need to respond fast and ensure people have access to clean and safe drinking water to ensure that cholera does not spread beyond control.”
The lack of sanitation and clean water sources, which increases the risk of contracting cholera, will be amplified after many homes have been washed away leaving displaced communities to be housed in camps. The number of people living in camps, may cause them to become hotspots for Cholera and waterborne diseases. In addition to risks of cholera, the floods have caused many communities to be cut off from food for many days, as well as causing widespread damage to farms, and death of livestock. Many of these areas were already suffering from significant food insecurity.
The IFRC and its membership has launched an Emergency Appeal seeking 6.0 million Swiss Francs, which will help the MRCS to assist up to 160,000 people over 5 districts, who have been affected by the severe impacts of Tropical Storm Freddy. Through the appeal, MRCS, and its partners with the IFRC will look to scale up their response to the impact of Tropical Storm Freddy. The response will focus on the immediate needs of families displaced and hosted in camps.
For more information or to arrange a media interview, contact:
In Malawi (IFRC):
Ella Mcsharry, +263 78 689 3350,
Felix Washon, +265 999 95 57 21, [email protected]
In Pretoria (IFRC): Robyn Lee Doyle, +27605031833, [email protected]
In Nairobi (IFRC): Rita Nyaga, +2541 10 837154, [email protected]
In Geneva (IFRC): Tommaso Della Longa, +41-79-708 4367, [email protected]
Four candles on a rickety table are the only heating and lighting in the makeshift home of Sonia and José Antonio, the four walls around them seemingly held up by a miracle
As lighting, the candles do their job, at least, for the tiny living space. As heating, the candles don’t cut it: a cold night of 6 degrees both outside, and inside.
The repeated dry coughs of 38-year-old Sonia are just one consequence of the lack of heat. Of the kind of cold that gets into your bones.
“They should give her a VIP card at the hospital,” jokes José Antonio, as he lists her lung ailments.
They’ve been a couple for four years, almost as long as they’ve lived between these four walls in the middle of a site that was once an important truck factory on the outskirts of Alcalá de Henares, Madrid.
Tonight, like so many others, they are visited by Juani and Basilio, two volunteers from the Spanish Red Cross homeless care teams. They have brought some food, as the two mastiff puppies, who keep looking for cuddles from the volunteers, can sense.
"Come on, get down from there," José Antonio scolds one of them, "you don't have to be cuddly, you have to defend the home," he laments. A generator was recently stolen from them, and with it, their heat.
The Red Cross volunteers advise the couple on some of the assistance they can offer and other administrative procedures, but, above all, they share their time.
"Our main job is to listen, to get them to open up. Imagine that you live alone, in the street, and you have no one to talk to from the moment you get up until the moment you go to bed," says Basilio, a former military man, who is now in his second year as a volunteer in the homeless care programme.
Juani and Basilio's route next takes them to the unfinished changing rooms of a sports facility in the area. There are no windows, no doors, no electricity, no water. The current ‘tenant’, Javier, arrives shortly after by bicycle.
By the light of mobile phones, walking among the rubble, you can see broken mattresses, discarded clothes and empty food cans.
But the laughter begins. Javier has found himself a new girlfriend, and proudly shows pictures of her off to volunteers Juani and Basilio on his mobile phone. He is very happy with her. His last girlfriend had beat him.
"That's the main problem, the dependencies that many of the people we work with carry with them and the violence that accompanies them", Basilio points out.
Juani and Basilio's nocturnal route then takes them to an old warehouse in an industrial estate in Alcalá. There they will have another laugh and a few jokes with 68-year-old Moisa, of Romanian origin.
Moisa has managed to turn the old warehouse into something resembling a home. He even has a television set on which he watches cowboy movies, the old-fashioned kind that he likes.
As he lights up a cigarette, under the disapproving gaze of Juani and Basilio, they begin to talk about the divine and the human and quickly move on from politics to lighter subjects, such as the singer Carla Bruni.
After dropping off some food, Basilio and Juani begin the journey back to the Red Cross headquarters in Alcalá.
They feel a bit sad, they say. They recently lost a friend from the street. A ‘family member’, they call him. Because, to them, they are all like family.
"At least he didn't die in the street, they were able to take him to the hospital and he passed away in a bed," Basilio stresses.
"In spite of everything, we have to go on, we can't take our problems home and let the situations we live through break us; I can help if I'm well, if I smile", says Juani, who has spent time on sick leave in the past when another person he was supporting passed away.
Comprehensive support for the homeless
Juani and Basilio are two of the more than 5,000 Spanish Red Cross volunteers who work with homeless people in Spain.
The Spanish Red Cross runs 77 Social Emergency Units (UES) for this purpose in nearly 40 provinces. In addition, they offer 800 places in temporary accommodation for critical moments and run 31 day centres in which they can offer showers, laundry or canteen services when needed.
As part of a wider network of organisations providing support to homeless people, they can also refer or transport people who need help to other accommodation or services as needed.
"The aim of our work is not only to provide basic goods such as food, shelter and hygiene products, but also to work for the social inclusion of homeless people," says Raquel Zafra, head of the programme in Alcalá de Henares.
"Our aim is always for people to go to different spaces where we can provide more in-depth support in the form of social care, monitoring and accompaniment, information and guidance, mediation, or training activities", stresses Zafra.
Through the Social Emergency Units, the Spanish Red Cross assisted more than 18,000 people in 2022.
Geneva/Ankara/Damascus (16 February 2023)–As the scale of the earthquake’sdevastation inSyriaandTürkiyebecomes clearer, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is increasing its Emergency Appeals from CHF 200 million to CHF 650 million to respond to rising humanitarian needs in both countries.
“The fullimpactof this earthquake is still unfolding. The situation on the ground is rapidly changing, and needs are growing by the minute. For survivors, these are some of the hardest moments of their lives and the road to recoverywill belong. The most urgent needs are shelter, health care and sanitation, food, and water. People are also facing major distress – early access to mental health and psychosocial support is critical,” said IFRC’s Secretary General Jagan Chapagain,who is currently visiting communities in Syria and Türkiye.
The Syrian Arab Red Crescent and Turkish Red Crescent have been working around the clock to support affected communities even though many staff and volunteers have also lost homes and loved ones.
Millions of people in Syria and Türkiye are affected, and many are seeking shelter at relatives’ homes, inneighbouringcities or in emergency shelters. Others are sleeping in their cars, in tents or outdoors, exposed to freezing temperatures. Temporary shelters are critical so that evacuated families have a warm place to stay while they figure out next steps.
Long-term global support and solidarity to deliver humanitarian assistance will be needed in the monthsand yearsof recovery ahead.
IFRC’s Emergency Appealssupport impacted people throughthe Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the Turkish Red Crescentvia rapid response teams, funding, material assistance and more. Updates to the IFRC’s increased financial asks tell the story of a continually unfolding disaster with compounding needs—from shelter and health to livelihoods and food security.
InTürkiye, Turkish Red Crescent has deployed more than 5,000 staff and volunteers in ten affected provinces with stocks of food and basic aid items to support those injured and evacuated. Teams have distributed more than 31 million hot mealstopeople outdoors and at emergency shelters. To meet the increased demand for blood, Turkish Red Crescent has sent its national blood stock to the affected regions and is calling on people across Türkiye to donate blood.
InSyria, Syrian Arab Red Crescent teams have been responding with 4,000 volunteers and staff inthehardest hit areas – including Hama, Aleppo, Lattakia and Tartous – reaching more than 365,000 people with life-saving support. Medical units have been performing first aid, emergency evacuations and transport to hospitals. Volunteers on the ground have distributed more than 220,000 packages with items such as food, water, basic relief supplies and hygiene kits, and have been helping people connect with loved ones separated by the crisis.
Both Red Crescent teams are providing mental health and psychosocial support to those in need to help alleviate distress and refer them to long-term mental health care if necessary.
In Palestinian Refugee camps in Syria, Palestine Red Crescent teams are working together with Syrian Arab Red Crescent to provide lifesaving support, including first aid and food distribution. Response teams were focused on Palestinian camps in Aleppo and Latakia, managing ambulances, medical clinics, doctors, and volunteers.
The earthquake has prompted a huge wave of solidarity from the IFRC network: dozens of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies from aroundthe world have offered technical support. Many of them have already supported the Turkish Red Crescent and Syrian Arab Red Crescent with emergency relief items. Almost 60 National Societies have started domestic fundraising campaigns.
For more information or to coordinate an interview, please contact:
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Beirut / Cairo, 22 December 2022 -The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have signed a regional Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen National Societies’ capacities and ensure coordinated action to protect and provide basic assistance services to migrants, including displaced people and communities in the MENA Region.
In 2020, there were 281 million international migrants and refugees in the world, out of which about 40 million were in the MENA region. In 2021, conflict and disasters triggered 1.2 million internal displacements in MENA, bringing the total of internal displacements in the region to 12.4 million.
Dr. Hossam Elsharkawi, IFRC MENA Regional Director said: “The IFRC has a long history of helping National Societies provide support and assistance to migrants and displaced people wherever they are along their journeys on land and at sea; our humanitarian service points offer services and protection”.
“We are joining forces with IOM to promote the safety, dignity, and well-being of migrants, irrespective of their legal status, especially those in fragile, protracted crises, violent and hard-to-reach settings,”added Dr Elsharkawi.
Mr. Othman Belbeisi, IOM MENA Regional Director, said: “IOM is pleased to announce this regional partnership with the IFRC which will enable us to strengthen our collaboration for the benefit of migrants, host communities, and partners.”
“Through our joint efforts, we look forward to enhancing migration governance working through a whole-of-society and whole-of-government approach in the spirit of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration and the Sustainable Development Goals,” added Mr Belbeisi.
The MoU is based on the Sustainable Development Goals, Global Protection Cluster (GP20), the Global Compact on Migration (GCM), and IOM framework for addressing internal displacement and its progressive resolutions of displacement framework. It aims to reinforce collaboration with governments and relevant stakeholders on human mobility governance at all levels by capitalizing on the IFRC Global Strategy on Migration as well as the MENA Red Cross/Red Crescent migration network.
The new partnership builds on previous cooperation between both organizations. Most recently in October 2022, IOM and IFRC organized a dialogue called “Strengthening the intergenerational Dialogue on Climate Action and the Impacts of Climate Change on human mobility” to discuss the climate change-mobility nexus, especially for young populations in the MENA region.
With climate change being an increasingly potent driver of migration, the collaboration between IOM and IFRC seeks to propose better solutions for evidence-based policy recommendations, in response to the climate crisis vis-a-vis migration trends in the region.
About the IFRC:
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world’s largest humanitarian network. Our secretariat supports local Red Cross and Red Crescent action in more than 192 countries, bringing together almost 15 million volunteers for the good of humanity.
About the IOM:
Established in 1951, IOM is the leading intergovernmental organization in the field of migration and works closely with governmental, intergovernmental, and non-governmental partners. With 175 member states, a further 8 states holding observer status, and offices in over 100 countries, IOM is dedicated to promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It does so by providing services and advice to governments and migrants.
For more information please contact:
In Beirut, IFRC Head of Communications, Mey Al Sayegh, [email protected]
In Cairo, Communication Officer at IOM MENA Regional Office, Tamim Elyan, [email protected]