United Nations Humanitarian Assistance
Functions of the UN: Humanitarian Assistance
Introduction to United Nations Humanitarian Assistance
Since the end of the Cold War the UN has become increasingly involved in providing humanitarian assistance to people in need. All too frequently, the humanitarian crises to which the UN responds are caused by international conflict. The UN can also respond to humanitarian crises caused by natural disasters such as floods or hurricanes. Conflicts and wars may create refugee crises, as when people flee their homes for fear of persecution or harm. Agencies such as the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the World Food Program (WFP) can mobilize international assistance in a short time frame to respond to a crisis.
Increasingly, UN agencies work with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that provide relief and assistance, as well as with the aid agencies of governments, to coordinate a global response to humanitarian crises. For example, in 1999 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) began to bomb the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (see Serbia and Montenegro) to protest its treatment of ethnic Albanians in the province of Kosovo. The conflict created a massive flow of refugees out of Kosovo and into the neighboring province of Montenegro and the countries of Albania and Macedonia. These governments were not able to absorb the large number of refugees. International aid agencies, led and coordinated by the UN, responded to the crisis and were able to house, feed, and care for the thousands of refugees who had fled the fighting.” (1)
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