Blogs

Under the dark skies of Sekota, where the threat of rain looms over the dusty market, amidst the vibrant chatter and bleating of goats, Wirqa Bere, a 20-year-old single mother from the nearby community of Birbir, stands with renewed hope. 

I chose to work as a humanitarian because, at the core, I'm driven by a sense of shared humanity. While everyone is human, we all make different choices, and for me, the path to humanitarian work was guided by both circumstance and the organizations I became involved with.

In a manmade war, female activists like Khaidja have defied rigid gender norms to forge peace and safety in Yemen, risking everything for their seat at the peace table.

Our team drove through Harasta today, a town near the capital of Damascus that has witnessed heavy destruction. The scene of buildings with their roofs collapsed to the ground had become all too familiar. Piles of rubble stretch as far as the eye can see, making one wonder about the lives of the people who once lived there - are they still alive? Will they ever come home? Did they find shelter? Were they able to start anew or are they still struggling to rebuild their lives? From afar, the effects the conflict has left on people's lives might not be so visible with…

Two years since the escalation of war in 2022, Ukraine is struggling to support those who are most vulnerable across the country. In 2022, as a result of Russia’s invasion, Ukraine’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell by almost 30%. With five million people internally displaced (IDP’s) , providing services for those in need is getting more complicated.  There is a shortage of housing for those whose homes were destroyed, and many people cannot support themselves.

Oleksandra, 22, is a community social worker on gender-based violence. She is a part of the dynamic team of Rokada, a Ukrainian charitable foundation that works with internally displaced people (IDPs) and other vulnerable communities whose lives have been strongly affected by the war.

I felt a buzz of energy and calm when I was at the Stockholm Forum on Peace and Development — a feeling quite different from the heaviness of the tragedies unfolding in many parts of Africa.Tropical storm Filipo, just a year after the devastating Cyclone Freddy, has left hundreds of thousands of people in Mozambique in urgent need of humanitarian support. In Kenya, where I live, relentless waves of torrential rains and deadly floods have displaced thousands of people and caused severe damage to infrastructure. 

Europe faces a shift in the political landscape, marked by a rise of far-right and euro-sceptic political parties. While the next few weeks may see some political jostling, centrist parties are set to hold their majority. However, the European Parliament will likely see more fragmentation and less consensus building, as the increase of the far-right will lead to a focus on short-term, self-serving agendas or even political gridlock. But we cannot let that happen. There is simply too much at stake.   

After the atrocities committed on October 7, 2023, Israel’s escalation in Gaza is the most brutal onslaught of violence carried out against Palestinians during the 57-year-long Israeli occupation. Before the latest escalation of violence, over 80% of the population in Gaza relied on some form of humanitarian aid for survival, and life in the Gaza Strip was characterised by the almost total restriction on travel and trade, and the absence of social safety nets and livelihood opportunities. However, life for the 2.3 million Palestinians trapped inside Gaza has turned into an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.  

Gambella, in Western Ethiopia, has become a refuge for almost 400,000 people from South Sudan, fleeing their homes due to conflict, droughts and flooding. Among them, women and young children make up the majority. Join us on a journey through a day in the lives of the women living in Gambella. Delve into these stories of strength and resilience, despite the challenges of life in the camps