Tackle 'forgotten' humanitarian crises, UNHCR urges world leaders

Geneva, Jan 22 (IANS/AKI) Help for humanitarian crises is directly linked to the media attention these receive, Filippo Grandi, head of the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR, said Monday, urging political leaders to take on the world's "forgotten crises".

"The media plays a vital role in drawing public attention to forgotten and neglected crises," he said as international aid organisation CARE launched a new study of the most under-reported humanitarian crises of 2017.

CARE's 'Suffering in Silence' study covers North Korea, Eritrea, Burundi, Sudan, Central African Republic, DRC, Mali, Lake Chad Basin (Niger, Cameroon, Chad), Vietnam and Peru.

"Political leaders must step up and shoulder responsibility for tackling today's forgotten crises.

"Despite the tragic consequences for the lives of millions affected by conflict and displacement, the gap between humanitarian needs and available funding continues to exist. The outlook for 2018 is grim," Grandi warned.

Poor governance, growing poverty, inequality and climate change are fuelling these conflicts and the political will to resolve them is "weak", he added.

--IANS/AKI

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