Fast response in a crisis

Humanitarian assistance

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Briefly explained: Humanitarian assistance

As a result of disasters, conflicts or crises, people often find themselves in life-threatening emergency situations. In such cases, Help provides humanitarian assistance. But what does this term actually mean, what are the humanitarian principles and what are the challenges involved?

What is humanitarian assistance?

Humanitarian assistance is short-term and needs-based support for people who are in need as a result of crises, conflicts or natural disasters. It aims to save lives, alleviate suffering and secure the most basic needs - e.g. access to food, drinking water, medical care and safe shelter.

The focus is always on people: humanitarian assistance is provided regardless of ethnic origin, gender or ideology. In 2024, around 320 million people worldwide were dependent on humanitarian assistance, particularly in regions such as Ukraine, the Middle East and the Sahel.

Unlike long-term development cooperation, humanitarian assistance responds quickly and flexibly to acute emergencies. It starts where there is humanitarian need - be it due to armed conflicts, natural disasters or health crises (e.g. the COVID-19 pandemic).

What are the goals of humanitarian assistance?

  • Ensuring survival: Humanitarian assistance aims to save lives - e.g. by providing drinking water, food and medical care.
  • Alleviating human suffering: Humanitarian organizations are committed to alleviating the suffering of those affected.
  • Preserving human dignity: Even in emergency situations, it must be ensured that those affected are treated with dignity.

The 4 Fundamental humanitarian principles

To ensure that people in emergency situations can survive in dignity, humanitarian assistance is based on four basic principles that have been recognized by the UN General Assembly as the basis for humanitarian assistance worldwide.

All humanitarian organizations work according to these basic principles.

  • Humanity: The aim of humanitarian assistance is to alleviate human suffering wherever possible and to save lives.
  • Impartiality: Humanitarian action is based on need and must not discriminate on the basis of age, gender, religious affiliation, nationality, ethnicity or ideology.
  • Neutrality: In conflict situations, no sides are taken or certain sides favored. Neutrality enables aid providers to gain access to people in need.
  • Independence: Humanitarian objectives are independent of political, military, economic or other objectives.

Where humanitarian assistance is provided

Humanitarian organizations like Help are active wherever people's lives are acutely threatened. We work closely with local partners in order to act effectively and responsibly.

Natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods or hurricanes can devastate entire regions and suddenly put millions of people in an emergency situation. In such cases, every hour counts: relief organizations provide those affected with drinking water, emergency shelters, food and medical support.

In conflict and war zones, the population often suffers from displacement, hunger and a lack of medical care. Humanitarian organizations ensure survival here - in compliance with humanitarian principles.

Climate change-related crises such as droughts or floods are increasingly leading to food crises and famines worldwide. Humanitarian assistance provides acute food aid in affected regions and also promotes the resilience of the local population.

Humanitarian assistance also makes an important contribution in health emergencies such as epidemics or pandemics: by providing hygiene products, access to medical care and targeted information campaigns.

Challenges in humanitarian assistance

Access to the affected people is particularly difficult after natural disasters or in conflict regions. Destroyed roads, flooding or political restrictions often delay the delivery of relief supplies. In such cases, alternative transportation routes must be found.

In addition, the need for humanitarian assistance has been growing continuously in recent years. The consequences of climate change and the increasing number of protracted conflicts mean that more and more people are dependent on assistance. At the same time, global funding for humanitarian assistance is decreasing or is unevenly distributed.

Another challenge is the efficient coordination of relief measures. In crisis regions, numerous organizations are usually active at the same time. To ensure that there are no overlaps or gaps in humanitarian action, humanitarian actors must work closely together, pool their resources and follow clear structures. To this end, international organizations introduced the so-called “cluster approach” in 2005 in order to better coordinate work in the various humanitarian sectors (e.g. food, water, sanitation and hygiene).

Help meets these challenges with many years of experience and focuses on the localisation of humanitarian action in order to make it more effective and sustainable.

Danger for humanitarians

Humanitarian workers are exposed to many risks every day in conflict and crisis areas. In 2024, more people died during humanitarian action than ever before: 380 humanitarians were killed - 192 of them in the Gaza Strip alone. A further 273 were injured and 126 kidnapped. 

To honor the commitment of humanitarian workers worldwide and raise awareness of the challenges and dangers they face in their work, the United Nations has declared a day of remembrance. World Humanitarian Day is dedicated to humanitarian workers every year on August 19.

August 19 was chosen to commemorate the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, in 2003, which killed 22 people, including UN Special Envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. World Humanitarian Day is also an occasion to promote global solidarity and encourage the international community to provide and support humanitarian assistance.

Humanitarian assistance in practice

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War in Ukraine

The war against Ukraine escalated in February 2022. The humanitarian situation has deteriorated dramatically since then. Over 12 million people in Ukraine are currently dependent on humanitarian assistance. Help is working on the ground to provide the population with relief supplies, medical care and psychological help, among other things.

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After the war in Syria

Even after the change of power, more than 16 million people in Syria are still dependent on humanitarian assistance. Almost 14 years of war have brought the population to the end of its tether. Help supports the people with relief supplies, medical aid and combats malnutrition among young children.

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Earthquake in Myanmar

At the end of March 2025, the earth shook in Myanmar. More than 3,700 people died in the 7.7-magnitude quake and many families lost their homes. By working with local partners, Help was able to take immediate action and provided affected families with relief supplies, emergency shelters and cash assistance, among other things.

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FAQ

Humanitarian assistance refers to short-term, needs-based support for people in acute emergencies - for example as a result of natural disasters, conflicts or epidemics. The aim is to save lives, alleviate suffering and secure basic needs: Food, water, medical care and protection.

Humanitarian assistance responds quickly to acute crises and is limited in time. Development cooperation, on the other hand, is designed for the long term and aims to combat the structural causes of poverty or inequality - for example through education projects or economic development.

Humanitarian assistance is based on four internationally recognized principles:

  • Humanity: The focus is on protecting life and dignity.
  • Impartiality: Assistance is provided only as needed.
  • Neutrality: No taking sides in conflicts.
  • Independence: Humanitarian objectives are independent of political or economic interests.

Humanitarian assistance is used wherever human lives are threatened by crises - for example after disasters such as earthquakes or floods, in war zones or during famines. Humanitarian action takes place worldwide, often under difficult conditions.

Localisation means that local and national actors take an active role in the planning, implementation and monitoring of humanitarian action. You can find more information and examples on our topic page.

Humanitarian assistance is mainly financed by public funds provided by governments, the European Union or the United Nations, for example. Donations from private individuals, companies and foundations also play an important role.

According to UNOCHA'S Financial Tracking Service, the following countries/institutions were the five largest donors in 2024:

  1. United States of America
  2. Germany
  3. European Union
  4. United Kingdom
  5. Sweden

Germany is committed to helping those affected by humanitarian crises worldwide, currently for example in Syria, Ukraine, Sudan and Afghanistan. Humanitarian assistance is funded by the Federal Foreign Office. The assistance is provided by humanitarian organizations such as “Help - Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe” in cooperation with local organizations and initiatives.

Traditional emergency and disaster relief is reactive and takes place following a disaster. Anticipatory action begins shortly before the disaster strikes. Humanitarian organizations such as Help interpret the signs of an approaching emergency in advance and take concrete measures a few weeks to a few days in advance with the aim of reducing the likelihood and severity of a humanitarian emergency occurring. This includes, for example, increasing drinking water reserves and delivering relief supplies to the affected region.

Anticipatory action is not the same as disaster risk reduction, which primarily aims to strengthen the basic resilience of communities in regions that are often affected by natural disasters such as earthquakes. This includes, for example, the construction of evacuation centers and the provision of first aid training.