Humanitarian Assistance

Today, humanitarian assistance is one of the most dynamic areas of global governance. The demand for an international response to humanitarian crises is on the rise. This increase relates to a growing vulnerability of large parts of the world’s population to the effects of war and natural disaster due to factors such as changing forms of warfare, climate change, urbanization, population growth, raising food prices, and the scarcity of water and energy. The humanitarian assistance provided has also grown significantly. Humanitarian aid budgets are on a consistent rise, as are the actors providing this assistance.

The increase of humanitarian actors in combination with amplified linkages between humanitarian assistance and other global issues challenge the effectiveness of the humanitarian system. As a result, humanitarians intensively discuss how assistance should and can be effectively provided both in light of these challenges and in the spirit of the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence. The debate is accompanied by essential / significant reform processes, aiming at making humanitarian assistance more predictable, accountable and inclusive.

GPPi contributes to the improvement of humanitarian assistance through in-depth analysis, global dialogue, and the evaluation of humanitarian assistance programs.