Appeals & Funding * Donations
Saturday, November 07, 2009   
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Natural disasters and humanitarian emergencies often occur without warning: in an instant, normalcy gives way to emergency, and citizens become refugees in need of immediate assistance.

Recent disasters—including the Indian Ocean tsunami and the South Asia earthquake—have been met by an unprecedented outpouring of generosity from governments, organizations, and individuals. But they have also highlighted the time lag between an appeal for funds and the transfer of cash needed to respond to a crisis. From 2002 to 2005, only 16% of funds pledged in response to UN “flash appeals” were provided to the UN within the critical first month of humanitarian emergencies.

The UN’s new Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF)—first proposed by Secretary-General Annan, and passed by the General Assembly in December 2005—works by providing predictable funding for unpredictable emergencies. A pot of money contributed in advance by donor countries supplies funds for the UN life-saving work within 72 hours of an emergency. The CERF also allows the UN to respond to humanitarian emergencies that, while no less urgent, receive less media attention and international funding than other crises.

When disasters happen, the world looks to the UN to lead the international response. The new CERF provides an easy and centralized way for the world—governments, organizations, and individuals—to support the UN’s life-saving efforts for people in their hour of need.
 
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This website was developed with the assistance of Thematic Funding from the Humanitarian Aid Department of the European Commission in 2004 and 2005