Launching its 2023 health emergency appeal, the WorldHealth Organisation said that it needed $2.54 billion this year to help a record number of people facing disease and starvation.
In its appeal, the WHOsaid that a staggering 339 million people now need humanitarian assistance globally.
WHO Director GeneralTedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged donors “to be generous” and help WHO to save lives, prevent the spread of disease within and across borders, and support communities as they rebuild.
RESPONSE TO EMERGENCIES
The WHO said that it was already responding to an unprecedented number of intersecting health emergencies: climate change-related disasters such as flooding in Pakistan and food insecurity across the Sahel and in the greater Horn of Africa; the war in Ukraine; and the health impact of conflict in Yemen, Afghanistan, Syria and northern Ethiopia – all of these emergencies overlapping with the health system disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and outbreaks of measles, cholera, and other killers.
“This unprecedented convergence of crises demands an unprecedented response,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “More people than ever before face the imminent risk of disease and starvation and need help now. The world cannot look away and hope these crises resolve themselves. I urge donors to be generous and help WHO to save lives, prevent the spread of disease within and across borders, and support communities as they rebuild,” he said.
HEALTH CRISIS
The WHO said that they are providing assistance in 54 health crises around the world, 11 of which are classified as Grade 3, WHO’s highest level of emergency, requiring the most comprehensive response.
“As it is often the case, the most vulnerable are the worst-hit,” the UN agency said.
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