The European Union hosted an international conference today, Thursday, to raise funds for Syria, which was hit by a severe earthquake earlier this year, exacerbating the already dire situation the country has faced since the outbreak of conflict in 2011. European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič, who is hosting the conference and is responsible for the humanitarian aid provided by the bloc, stated, "Humanitarian funding for Syria is not keeping pace with the rapidly increasing needs."
Three UN organizations described the needs in Syria as "huge" and noted that only one-tenth of the required funding has been secured so far for 2023 projects aimed at assisting Syrians inside the country and refugees in the region. A joint statement from UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, and UN Development Programme Administrator Achim Steiner, who oversee the UN-led response to the crisis in Syria, emphasized that "more assistance for the Syrian people and the countries hosting them (refugees) is essential. The needs are massive."
The statement expressed hope for pledges similar to those made to Syria and its neighbors at a similar conference last year, which amounted to $6.7 billion. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees reports that more than 14 million Syrians have fled their homes since 2011, and approximately 6.8 million are still displaced within Syria, where almost all residents live below the poverty line.
Regional Director of the International Committee of the Red Cross Fabrizio Carboni pointed out that war-weary Syrians are living in extreme hardship and require funding "much greater than what is currently possible," as the committee has raised only half of its targeted funds. He added: "Humanitarian action does not fundamentally resolve the political crisis, conflict, and violence. Only politics can do that... We know that the solution is political and that there is an urgent need for it."
Head of the EU mission to Syria "Dan Stoenescu" stressed that "we cannot afford to lose another generation. Syria should no longer be a place where people flee from." The United States and Germany announced today that they would provide additional financial assistance to Syria. It is worth noting that approximately 5.5 million Syrian refugees live in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt.
