Global Humanitarian Overview 2020

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Publication language
English
Pages
88pp
Date published
01 Jan 2020
Type
Research, reports and studies
Keywords
Assessment & Analysis, Development & humanitarian aid

We began 2019 expecting humanitarian needs to be similar to those of 2018. We were wrong. Climatic shocks, the unexpected spread of infectious disease, and the impact of protracted and often intensifying conflicts have combined to drive needs to unprecedented levels this year. Over the course of the year, I met people suffering through these crises in more than 10 countries, among them Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, Venezuela and Zimbabwe. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, I heard from families whose lives had been changed forever by the Ebola virus outbreak, with loved ones lost – a situation only made worse by decades of insecurity, conflict and chronic poverty. In the Bahamas, I saw firsthand the devastating impact a severe hurricane – made more intense by climate change – can have on homes and livelihoods across nearly an entire country