Ukraine crisis: Children and families fleeing violence in Ukraine need care and protection urgently. You can help provide families searching for safety with essentials such as hygiene kits and safe spaces where children can receive psychosocial support.
East Africa emergency (including South Sudan): A complex hunger crisis driven by drought, conflict and political instability has left over 28 million people, including 17.5 million children, across Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda in need of life-saving assistance. Inter-communal conflict has been the largest driver of displacement. In South Sudan, a food crisis caused by conflict and political instability has resulted in more than one million people seeking refuge in Uganda.
Syria crisis: After almost 11 years of war, more than half of Syria’s population has been forced to flee their homes. More than 6.2 million people are currently displaced inside Syria and a further 5.7 million have sought refugee outside Syria, predominantly in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. ISIL have officially been defeated in Syria and Iraq, however conflict continues across Syria, with airstrikes intensifying in March 2019. Currently, 13.1 million people within Syria need assistance, including 5 million children.
World Vision’s priority is to save lives, and often the first response is to distribute a range of items such as shelter kits, food, clean water and hygiene products.
Our work focuses on children, especially those left vulnerable because they have lost parents or carers, or have been left homeless.
Whenever possible we integrate our emergency relief responses with our development and advocacy activities, to ensure communities receive long-term support – such as income-generating projects – as they recover.
World Vision responds to two main types of emergency:
In large responses, World Vision coordinates with the United Nations and other aid agencies to avoid duplication and make sure there are no gaps in the response.
We are part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership (AHP), a five-year (2017-2022) partnership between the Australian Government and NGOs. The aim of the AHP is to save lives, alleviate suffering and enhance human dignity in the face of conflict, disasters and other humanitarian crises.
In the AHP, World Vision partners with Habitat for Humanity Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM), CBM Australia and Field Ready.
Through the AHP, World Vision has received funds for humanitarian activities in Mozambique, Bangladesh (Rohingya crisis), Indonesia, Vanuatu, South Sudan and Nepal.
The AHP's "Disaster READY" program supports Pacific communities and governments to better prepare for and respond to disasters. The program places specific emphasis on the inclusion of women, disabled people and faith-based organisations in disaster preparedness.
Within this regional program, we are implementing preparedness activities together with our Pacific-based partners in Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Timor-Leste.
Our staff are trained in rapid assessment in the aftermath of a disaster to capture the immediate needs of affected populations. Based on the core humanitarian principles, aid is given based on needs and recognising the rights of all people affected by disaster and conflict. These include the right to receive humanitarian assistance and the right to protection and security.
We ensure that those affected by disasters are involved from the beginning and work with communities and local authorities to build back better and increase their resilience to future disasters.
Poorer communities and countries aren’t the only ones hit by disasters, but they have fewer resources and less-robust infrastructure with which to deal with them. Australia is known as a country of terrible extremes and we’ve lived through some devastating emergencies, including floods and bushfires. But we have well-trained and resourced emergency services, some of the world’s best hospitals and doctors, stable governments and countless other factors that help contribute to minimising the impact of emergencies and speeding up recovery.
Not every country is so lucky, and when emergencies hit there is little room for error, as:
Being prepared and having strategies in place to respond to emergencies is just one way World Vision helps people most in need.