United Nations (UN) expects an increase in the number of refugees in 2023 due to a recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria as well as a series of crises that require global assistance.
Kelly Clements, the UN’s deputy high commissioner for refugees, disclosed that the global need is huge and it’s just the start of what could be another difficult year.
Clements was on Middle East tour last month when the devastating earthquake occurred and she went to the large Syrian city of Aleppo immediately after the incident. Many parts of Syria are controlled by warring groups, making Syria’s response much slower than Turkey’s instant mobilization of government support.
In spite of this, the UNHCR was able to pull from programs in the Middle East and it now focuses on setting up housing. Syria had no fewer than 21 million citizens when its civil war began 12 years ago. Presently, 6.8 million Syrians are internally displaced and 5 million Syrians are refugees in other countries.
1.5 million Syrians are in Lebanon, a country where 20 percent of residents are refugees from other states, the highest percentage on the planet.
However, another frozen conflict in Yemen has produced a humanitarian disaster, as a global appeal for help reached only one-third of its goal this week.
The country is plagued by a violent civil war, an economic siege and increasingly severe natural disasters. Save the Children argued that the funding shortfall “will have a negative impact on the lives of millions of children in Yemen and on the long-term stability of the country.”
International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan announced $46 million for the 2023 Yemen appeal, which has Canada following a global trend of decreasing funding over the past three years.
Kelly Clements praised Canada for being one of the major funders of the UNHCR and for resettling some of the world’s highly vulnerable refugees whose needs can’t be catered for in many developing countries.
However, she hopes Canada will increase funding for these needs in the next federal budget. She made it known that UNHCR programming has restored dignity to people across the globe by resolving their urgent needs and empowering them to take up employment.
She said that the need for refugees around the world is huge, as such, the international community need to provide long-term support to rebuild their lives.
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