Madame Chair,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union.
The Candidate Countries Croatia* and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Armenia align themselves with this declaration.
The European Union would like to thank the Emergency Relief Coordinator Mr. John Holmes for his presentation today and for his tireless leadership. We underline his and OCHA’s central role in coordinating international humanitarian assistance.
The humanitarian segment in ECOSOC is a key forum for intergovernmental dialogue on contemporary humanitarian challenges and humanitarian response. The global consensus on ensuring effective delivery of humanitarian assistance can be articulated and strengthened through a constructive and informed dialogue. We all agree that the coordination and delivery of humanitarian assistance is one of the most important responsibilities of the United Nations. We all agree that the humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law provide the basis for humanitarian assistance. And we all agree that states have the primary responsibility for disaster management, but when emergencies are too overwhelming for an affected individual government to tackle, we must all join in support of affected populations.
In addition to the “traditional” causes of humanitarian emergencies, today a range of inter-connected trends are transforming the humanitarian environment and the operational landscape. Climate change, population growth and rapid urbanisation, as well as food insecurity combined with wide-spread poverty are already driving humanitarian needs. They increase and make more complex the vulnerability in many parts of the world. This is all compounded by the current global economic crisis. These various crises may also lead to new dynamics in conflicts. The international humanitarian system must stand ready to provide a more predictable and consistently effective response to humanitarian needs in ongoing crises as well as in new crises. This will require;
• First, renewed focus on disaster risk reduction and the strengthening of local, national and regional response capacity, including better preparedness systems, • Second, further enhancing the international humanitarian response system, • Third, respect for and adherence to international humanitarian law and humanitarian principles, including the preservation of humanitarian space.
The EU stresses the importance of increased efforts for disaster preparedness and disaster risk reduction at all levels. As was concluded at the recently held Second Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Geneva, results against the Hyogo Framework for Action are tangible. However, needs remain immense and are growing, partly due to the adverse effects of climate change. Efforts therefore need to be stepped up on several fronts one of them being the need for better coordination among key international preparedness partners with a view to agree on roles and responsibilities to more predictable and effective support to national and regional partners. In this regard we particularly underline the key role of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). Reducing disaster risk provides a vehicle to reduce poverty and vulnerability, safeguard development and to adapt to climate change, with beneficial effects on broader global stability and sustainability. Disaster risk reduction goes beyond the scope of humanitarian aid and should also be integrated in planning and policies in the field of development cooperation and climate change adaptation. Cooperation to strengthen local, national and regional capacities in the areas of disaster preparedness and response will benefit all. The UN humanitarian and development systems should come together in partnership to ensure an integrated support for national authorities and local NGOs to strengthen their response capacities. Each nation has capabilities, resources, experiences and knowledge that should be used in partnership by all nations and the international community for their mutual benefit. Mechanisms that tap these capacities and disseminate best practices and knowledge must be given high priority. Furthermore, support should be provided to strengthen national authorities and organizations’ capacity to request and effectively receive international assistance, including facilitating the coordination of international assistance. Here, the use of the International Disaster Response Laws, Rules and Principles, elaborated by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, is important.
In order to respond adequately to the complex humanitarian challenges, the humanitarian system needs to be flexible, efficient and predictable. The EU welcomes the consolidation of the humanitarian reforms and is pleased to note the positive effects of the cluster approach in strengthening and channelling capacity in the field. The cluster approach has proven to be a valuable mechanism in providing humanitarian leadership, accountability towards national stakeholders and in enhancing the inclusiveness of actors involved. Continuous efforts are, however, needed to further strengthen the humanitarian response and ensure timely delivery of humanitarian assistance. The EU underlines the key importance of strengthening the United Nations leadership in the field. While the leadership architecture is strengthened, the overall performance of humanitarian coordination leadership remains uneven. The EU therefore stresses the importance of enhancing efforts to empower the leadership role of the humanitarian coordinator.
The EU welcomes the continued efforts towards developing a framework for common needs assessments. Such a framework will allow for shared understanding of needs, which will contribute to a more optimal allocation of resources, proportional to actual needs and ultimately to a more effective and targeted response. OCHA has a central role in taking this work forward and the EU supports OCHA’s efforts in this regard. We strongly encourage all relevant humanitarian actors to cooperate in this important endeavour.
The EU stresses that adequate, predictable, equitable and timely funding is critical to an effective humanitarian response. The EU supports the full range of mechanisms at hand for humanitarian financing, and acknowledges their comparative advantages. We also welcome the outcome of the independent evaluation of the CERF, which proved that the Fund has become an essential instrument of international humanitarian action, complementing other humanitarian financing mechanisms. We welcome the large number of member states having contributed to this fund and call for continued contributions. We stress the importance of early and multi-year commitment to humanitarian organisations, including through humanitarian pooled funds as well as support to humanitarian agencies’ individual emergency reserves. Appropriate, flexible and predictable resourcing of NGOs remains crucial, and the EU will support their full engagement in humanitarian coordination frameworks. The EU urges therefore all donors to apply the principles of Good Humanitarian Donorship in supporting humanitarian assistance.
The EU emphasises the need to focus more on early recovery and a smooth transition from emergency to development. The respective actors should work together and coordinate from the earliest phases of a crisis with a view to ensuring a smooth transition and offering the best possible support to affected populations in their efforts to recover form the effects of crisis. We encourage OCHA, DOCO, UNDP and other relevant UN agencies to strengthen their co-operation in this respect.
The EU is gravely concerned about the humanitarian situations that display a further deterioration of long-standing conflicts and where new conflicts have erupted. Today tens of millions of civilians in the world are affected by complex emergencies. There are more than 26 million conflict or violence generated internally displaced persons that have been forced to leave their homes. In addition to this, an estimated 50 to 200 million people may move by the middle of the century as a result of the negative effects of climate change, either within their countries or across borders, on a permanent or temporary basis, voluntarily or forcibly displaced.
In these situations international humanitarian response is often essential to support and supplement national efforts to protect and meet the needs of affected populations. However, gaining safe, unimpeded and timely access to many of the victims continues to be a challenge. The EU urges all states and all parties to facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian personnel and supplies to affected communities in accordance with international humanitarian law. We also call for adherence to the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence and the preservation of humanitarian space.
We need urgent efforts to strengthen the protection of civilians. Actions on the ground have not yet matched the progress in words and the development of international norms and standards. This is particularly true for the prevention, investigation and prosecution of sexual and other forms of gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies. We welcome the Comprehensive strategy for Combating sexual Violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo and we encourage the concept of national strategies to be replicated in similar situations. The EU stands ready to financially and politically support the elaboration of such strategies and their implementation.
The EU is deeply concerned by the increase in deaths of UN and other humanitarian personnel caused by deliberate attacks. Locally recruited staff is often the most vulnerable. We urge states and all actors to take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of all humanitarian personnel. Violence against humanitarian personnel is sometimes accompanied by hostile statements against humanitarian workers, by national authorities and often through the media. Such incitements and harassments risk fuelling attacks and are unacceptable. The consequence of these aggressions is ultimately that the people in need do not receive the assistance they are entitled to.
The EU acknowledges that there can be situations, where military capabilities may have a unique role to play in securing the environment in which humanitarian actors provide relief. However, as mentioned in the SG-report, there has been a sharp increase in the involvement of military actors in the direct delivery of humanitarian assistance. The EU is deeply concerned by this development and reiterates its view that humanitarian action should be civilian by nature and that military delivery of humanitarian assistance should only be an option of last resort. Not respecting the distinct roles of the different actors may lead to immediate and longer term difficulties for humanitarian actors in carrying out crucial, life-saving work. Adequate civil-military coordination is therefore essential and we support OCHA’s role in this regard. The EU also emphasizes the need to make use of the Oslo Guidelines as well as the Military and Civil Defence Assets Guidelines in Complex Emergencies.
I will conclude by reiterating our fundamental message in this statement. In order to face today’s increasingly complex humanitarian challenges, we need to work together to forge a deeper and more engaged global partnership on international humanitarian emergency assistance, involving on the one side all member states of the United Nations as well as all relevant regional organisations and on the other side all relevant UN and non-UN humanitarian actors. The European Union remains firmly committed to this global partnership. We hope that the humanitarian segment in ECOSOC 2009 can mark the beginning of a new era of intergovernmental dialogue based on global consensus and respect for the humanitarian cause.
Thank you.
_______________