Why We Need to Fund the Syrian Humanitarian Appeal

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is asking for $4.4 billion to provide assistance to about half of the population of Syria. This is the largest-ever single humanitarian appeal ever launched by the United Nations, testifying to the scale and complexity of this crisis.

I just sat down with Bettin Loucher, spokesperson for the World Food Program in New York who discusses the food needs of Syrians and logistical challenges of delivering aid to a war zone;  UNICEF spokesperson Sarah Crowe, who speaks to the needs of children affected by this crisis and identifies a generation lost from this conflict;  and Abdel Rahmen Ghandour the deputy director of communications from the UN Development Program who talks about the regional political implications of the humanitarian crisis.

Each interviewee makes the same point, but in a different way: the consequences of not providing for the urgent humanitarian needs of the Syrian people will have profound and long lasting consequences for the entire region.

Bettin Loucher, spokesperson for the World Food Program

 

Sarah Crowe, UNICEF

Abdel Rahmen Ghandour, UNDP