Burkina Faso topped a list of the world’s most neglected crises for a second year in a row, according to a report released Monday by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC).
The humanitarian organization said there were currently around 2 million internally displaced people in the West African country, most of them cut off from aid.
Junta-ruled Burkina Faso has been grappling with a jihadi insurgency for years. In 2023, more than 8,000 people were killed in the violence.
The number of people killed in violence doubled last year, with over 8,400 deaths. Meanwhile the number of Burkinabè refugees seeking safety in neighbouring countries almost tripled, reaching a total of 148,317 according to UNHCR figures. An unprecedented 42,000 people suffered catastrophic levels of food insecurity and up to 2 million civilians were trapped in 36 blockaded towns across the country by the year’s end. As armed groups imposed movement bans, little to no humanitarian assistance reached some of these areas. At least half a million people were cornered into a near-total aid blind spot.
With over 6,100 schools closed by spring 2023, Burkina Faso was home to nearly half of all closed schools in Central and West Africa. Up to 400 health facilities were shut down, and about as many were only able to provide minimal services, leaving 3.6 million people without access to healthcare – a 70 per cent increase from 2022.
Independent media coverage decreased as several international news outlets and journalists were banned from working in Burkina Faso in 2023. Additionally, the domestic press corps shied away from sensitive topics due to the heightened risks.
What is the list of neglected crises?
To arrive at its 2023 ranking, the NRC looked at which countries were worst affected by three metrics: funding shortfalls, lack of media attention and faltering international diplomatic initiatives.
It analyzed 39 crises in total.
All but one of the countries in the top 10 were in West or Central Africa.
Burkina Faso was in first place, followed by Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Niger, Honduras, South Sudan, Central African Republic, Chad and Sudan.
‘New normal’ of neglect
“The utter neglect of displaced people has become the new normal,” said Jan Egeland, the NRC’s secretary general.
“The world is neither shocked nor compelled to act by stories of desperation and record-breaking statistics,” Egeland added. “We need a global reboot of solidarity and a refocus on where needs are greatest.”
Most of today’s humanitarian crises are protracted in nature and involve multiple parallel crises. Across the countries featured in this report, a disastrous combination of conflict and violence, intercommunal tensions, displacement, and recurring disasters induced by climate change are making humanitarian needs all the more severe.
Many of the neglected crises featured in this report are interconnected. A crisis in one country often has ripple effects beyond its borders, affecting neighbouring countries and populations, and sometimes causing a broader regional impact. Competition over resources between refugees and local communities is a source of tension in most of the countries featured, partly driven by the lack of funding. A siloed approach to these crises may no longer be sufficient.
The NRC said its annual assessments pointed to a decline in international support and media coverage, partly due to the lack of media freedom in many of the countries on the list. However, the “ongoing reduction of humanitarian funding” was most stark, the report added.
In 2023, the shortfall between humanitarian appeals and money actually donated amounted to $32 billion (€29.5 billion), the NRC said, around $10 billion higher than in 2022.
The lack of resources was, in turn, leading to rising hunger levels across all countries on the list, the NRC said.
“We urgently need investment for the world’s most neglected crises. These investments must be made both in the form of diplomatic initiatives to get warring parties to come to the negotiating table, as well as funding commensurate with needs from donor countries,” said Egeland.
DW/NRC
Siddhartha 