High-level Humanitarian Event on Anticipatory Action: A Commitment to Act Ahead of Crises

Watch the recording of the Event

The United Nations and the Governments of Germany and the United Kingdom are convening a high-level event to advance anticipatory action and galvanise a collective push to act ahead of crises. This event comes at a key moment, building on recent G7 commitments on anticipatory action and ahead of UNFCCC COP26, recognizing the growing impact of climate change on the severity and frequency of disasters.

Global humanitarian needs are at an all-time high and continue to grow. Crises are driven by fragility and conflict, amplified by climate change and the impact of COVID-19. Some 237 million people will require humanitarian assistance in 2021, a 40 per cent increase on last year, while extreme poverty has risen for the first time in 22 years.

Rather than waiting for a shock to occur and humanitarian needs to manifest, we can predict both the shock (for example a drought or flood) and the impact (for example food insecurity) with increasing precision. This enables us to take anticipatory action before the worst impacts of the shock to save lives, stop needs growing, reduce suffering and maximize the impact of limited funding.

This high-level event – to be opened by the United Nations Secretary-General – will showcase compelling examples of this anticipatory approach and generate signals of support to scale action. Leaders from Governments, international financial institutions, the United Nations and civil society will come together to demonstrate that the world is committed to act ahead of predictable crises.

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Download the Co-Chairs' Statement

Boys sitting by flooded street

Programme

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Thursday, 9 September 2021

New York Time

8.00 - 9.00	Focal Points to connect online platform to ensure connectivity
9.00 - 9.30	Segment One: Opening Session
9.30 - 10.30	Segment Two: High-Level Panel Discussion
10.30 - 12.45	Segment Three: Statements and Pledge Announcements
12.45 - 13.00	Segment Four: Closing Session

Statements

Country

Egypt - Written Statement | Video Statement by H.E. Ambassador Alaa Roushdy, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Human Rights and International, Social and Humanitarian Affairs

Ireland - Written Statement by Ambassador Byrne Nason, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations

Italy - Video Statement by H.E. Ms. Marina Sereni, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs

Japan - Written Statement by Ambassador Kimura Tetsuya

Norway - Written Statement by Jens Frølich Holte, State Secretary

Philippines - Video Statement by H.E. Mr. Teodoro Locsin Jr., Secretary of Foreign Affairs

Republic of Korea - Written Statement by Ambassador Hyunjoo Oh, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the UN

Slovenia - Video Statement by Dr. Stanislav Raščan, State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Spain - Written Statement | Video Statement by Pilar Cancela, State Secretary for International Cooperation

Sweden - Video Statement by H.E. Mr. Per Olsson Fridh, Minister for International Development Cooperation

United Arab Emirates - Video Statement by H.E. Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai

Organization

African Risk Capacity - Video Statement by Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and Director-General, ARC Group

African Union - Written Statement by H.E Ambassador Josefa L.C. Sacko, AU Commissioner of Agriculture, Rural Developmenet, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment

Anticipation Hub - Written Statement | Video Statement by Ms. Kara Siahaan, Head of the Anticipation Hub

Concern Worldwide - Written Statement | Video Statement by Mr. Dominic MacSorley, CEO

European Union - Video Statement by Janez Lenacic, European Commissioner for Crisis Management

Google - Written Statement | Video Statement by Mr. Kent Walker, Senior Vice President, Global Affairs

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - Written Statement

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) - Video Statement by Nena Stoiljkovic IFRC, USG for Global Relationships, Humanitarian Diplomacy and Digitalization

International Organization for Migration (IOM) - Video Statement by Antonio Vitorino, Director General

Qatar Fund for Development, Written Statement by H.E. Mr. Khalifa Al-Kuwari, Director General

Risk Early Action Partnership (REAP) - Video Statement by Ben Webster, Head of Secretariat

Sphere - Written Statement by Dr. Balwant Singh, Executive Director

Start Network - Written Statement by Christina Bennett, CEO

UN Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) - Video Statement by Mami Mizutori, Special Representative of the Secretary-General

UNICEF - Video Statement by Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director

UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) - Written Statement | Video Statement by Ms. Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance - Written Statement

Welthungerhilfe - Written Statement | Video Statement by Mathias Mogge, Secretary General Welthungerhilfe

World Bank - Video Statement by Axel van Trotsenburg, Managing Director of Operations

World Meteorological Organization (WMO) - Video Statement by Prof. Peterri Taalas, WMO Secretary-General