Key Messages: Advancing the Agenda for Humanity

The Agenda for Humanity

• The world is at a critical juncture. 130 million people around the world are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and protection – the highest numbers since the Second World War. Millions more are affected by fragility, conflicts and vulnerability.

• This is why Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon put forward a new Agenda for Humanity, calling on global leaders to stand up for our common humanity and reduce humanitarian suffering.

• The Agenda consists of 5 Core Responsibilities and 24 transformations that are needed to achieve progress to address and reduce humanitarian need, risk and vulnerability.

The World Humanitarian Summit: a point of departure

• The World Humanitarian Summit (Istanbul, May 2016) was a pivotal moment for the global community. It generated momentum and political determination to move forward on the Agenda for Humanity and its five core responsibilities, and kick-started concrete changes in the way we address humanitarian need, risk and vulnerability.

• At the Summit, 9,000 participants representing 180 Member States of the United Nations, over 700 local and international NGOs, the private sector and other stakeholders demonstrated overwhelming support for the transformations called for in the Agenda for Humanity.

• This support is evidenced by the nearly 3,000 commitments to action, and over 2,500 alignments with the core commitments and nearly 20 initiatives and partnerships that were launched to deliver the changes that are needed.

• Now the hard work of delivering these transformations and making lasting improvements for people caught up in crisis begins.