CERF Newsletter Dec 2009

CENTRAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE FUND PLEDGES: MOST SUCCESSFUL TO DATE

At the 8-9 December high-level United Nations conference convened in support of the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), donors pledged generous contributions totaling $424 million for 2010. The figure marks an increase of more than 10 percent from last December's conference, when some $380 million was raised.

Five new donors stepped forward - Madagascar, Mauritania, the Russian Federation, Singapore, and the Sovereign Order of Malta. Several long-standing donors also announced significant increases in their contributions, including Norway, Belgium, Brazil, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Pakistan, Slovenia, South Africa, and the United States. One private donor, Western Union, increased its pledge by 50 percent.

"In the coming year, we do not know exactly how the combination of conflict, climate change, demographic shifts, and a global economic slowdown will conspire to create emergency needs," said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. "But we do know that we will face such challenges, and that CERF will be an important part of the response," he added.

"I am delighted to see so many donors renew and strengthen their commitment to the humanitarian cause," said John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. "The CERF is crucial for our ability to assist quickly millions of people around the globe, as it enables us to carry out immediate life-saving activities wherever and whenever required."

Opening the session was the President of the United Nations General Assembly Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treki. He encouraged all Member States to contribute to the Fund. Also present on the podium were the Minister of State for International Development, United Kingdom, Mr. Gareth Thomas, and Mr. Tabrani, Senior Advisor, National Agency for Disaster Management, Republic of Indonesia. For more information, visit http://cerf.un.org.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS OF THE CERF ADVISORY GROUP

On 8 December, the recommendations and conclusions of the Advisory Group from the November 2009 meeting were issued. In those recent discussions, the Advisory Group recognized the solid performance and management of the Fund in 2009. The Advisory Group commended CERF's work towards finalising a Performance and Accountability Framework and recommended the Fund pilot the evaluation approach in one or more countries in early 2009. In particular, CERF will complement reporting arrangements with independent evaluations in a small number of selected countries.