We live in most violent times with around 180 armed conflicts smouldering or raging. Most violence is concentrated in some 50 countries, but no region is untouched. The trends are ominous with conflict events increasing by 40% since 2020.
While 2022 saw more than 200,000 battle-related deaths, a quarter of humanity — some 2 billion people — is exposed to wider impacts: destruction, disruption, impoverishment, displacement, hunger, and disease.
As humanitarian needs peak with over 117 million people forcibly displaced by the end of 2023, and over 40 million facing emergency hunger levels, international aid cannot keep up. Less than a fifth of the United Nations’ $49 billion emergency appeal is funded half-way through this year, while aid delivery is often attacked, blocked, obstructed, and looted.
About the author
Mukesh Kapila
Mukesh Kapila is emeritus professor of global health and humanitarian affairs at the University of Manchester. Originally qualified in medicine, he was head of humanitarian aid at the U.K. government, resident and humanitarian coordinator at United Nations, emergencies director at the World Health Organization, and under-secretary-general at International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Three decades of experience took him to 120 countries including numerous conflict and crisis zones.
