World Humanitarian Day is celebrated on August 19.
This day was announced by a resolution of the UN General Assembly of December 11, 2008 to help raise public awareness of humanitarian assistance activities around the world and the importance of international cooperation in providing it.
The date was chosen to commemorate the victims of the bombing at the UN headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq on August 19, 2003. The terrorist attack then killed 22 people, including the UN Secretary General's Special Representative Sergio Vieira de Mello.
World Humanitarian Day pays tribute to those who gave their lives in humanitarian aid and those who continue to help millions of people. The day also highlights the continuing need for humanitarian assistance around the world and the importance of international cooperation in delivering it. Every year, disasters inflict immense suffering on millions of people. Typically, the most disadvantaged, disadvantaged and vulnerable people are the victims.
Aid workers are committed to providing life-saving assistance and long-term rehabilitation to disaster-affected communities regardless of where they live, nationality, social background, religion, gender, race, or any other characteristic.
Four entities lead the UN emergency response: the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Program (WFP).
Humanitarian assistance at the UN is handled by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), with offices in 30 countries.
This year, World Humanitarian Day is celebrated as the world continues to struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic that has erupted in recent months. Aid workers are overcoming unprecedented obstacles to help people in a humanitarian crisis in 54 countries and nine other countries in humanitarian situations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
References:
- United Nations Organization (2021). World Humanitarian Day. https://www.un.org/ru/observances/humanitarian-day
