Saudi Arabia has successfully implemented a three-pronged strategy during its presidency of the UN OCHA Donor Support Group to ensure aid access, proactive humanitarian action, and expand the donor base, said the head of Saudi Arabia's Presidency team, Aqeel al-Ghamdi.
During an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Ghamdi explained that humanitarian work faces numerous challenges, including the persistent increase in disasters and their impact on affected populations.
He also referred to limited donor numbers and significant complications impeding aid delivery and prolonging the duration of crises.
On Saturday, a high-level meeting will be held in Riyadh under the leadership of Saudi Arabia as chair of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Donor Support Group.
Aqeel, Assistant Supervisor General of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) for Planning and Development revealed that the meeting would discuss humanitarian financing, the global humanitarian overview, OCHA's priorities, and the humanitarian action initiative.
The representative emphasized that Saudi Arabia has dealt with utmost neutrality in providing humanitarian assistance to the world, adhering to the principles of international humanitarian law.
"For a whole year, the Saudi team has executed this plan, which includes three strategic priorities: the strategic plan for OCHA 2023-2026, results-based management, and assessing common needs," he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He highlighted that this meeting follows numerous high-level meetings and expert-level discussions in New York, Geneva, and Riyadh to reach solutions and proposals that enhance humanitarian work, methodologies, and OCHA frameworks.
Humanitarian Financing
According to Ghamdi, the topics discussed at the meeting include humanitarian financing, the global humanitarian overview, OCHA's priorities, and the humanitarian action initiative.
He announced that at the conclusion, the presidency will be handed over to Luxembourg, which will remain head of the group until June 2024.
Proactive Humanitarian Action
According to the Saudi representative, proactive humanitarian action is synonymous with early action, taken in anticipation of a crisis, to mitigate the impact or improve the humanitarian response.
Ghamdi cited examples of proactive projects implemented by KSrelief, including flood prevention and mitigation projects in Tajikistan, Sudan, Somalia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
Challenges Facing Humanitarian Work
Despite the development of humanitarian response frameworks and the significant diversity of organizations and entities involved in humanitarian affairs, there are still substantial challenges facing humanitarian work, according to Ghamdi.
He referred to the persistent increase in disasters and their diverse and complex nature, which pose obstacles and challenges to response efforts, and the significant increase in the number of people affected by disasters.
"There is a limited number of donors, and efforts are spread thin due to many annual disasters and ongoing crises."
"Furthermore, significant complications hinder aid delivery, especially in conflict-affected areas, where violence and unlawful actions against relief workers create additional obstacles," he said.
Saudi Arabia's Global Humanitarian Role
Ghamdi affirmed that Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom of Humanity, extends its helping hand to all countries while adhering to the principles of international humanitarian law, alleviating the suffering of those in need, and providing support through bilateral and multilateral channels.
The official declared that since its establishment in 2015, the KSrelief had provided humanitarian and relief assistance amounting to $6.23 billion, implementing 2,402 projects in 92 countries.
Furthermore, he added that the center also oversees and implements international volunteer work in 33 countries through 381 projects, benefiting over 937,000 individuals.
According to Aqeel, Saudi Arabia's total developmental assistance over the past decades has exceeded $96 billion in more than 167 countries, implementing over 5,451 humanitarian, developmental, and charitable projects.
Moreover, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia led initiatives and provided nearly $900 million in funding for pandemic-related projects.
Ensuring aid delivery
The Assistant Supervisor General clarified that humanitarian and relief organizations had gained significant experience securing aid delivery to those in need over the years.
They have established standards for monitoring and evaluating aid.
King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid uses clear and international criteria to evaluate and monitor its aid.
"We have a professional and trained team who visit the field and aid distribution areas to oversee the procurement, delivery, and distribution of aid, ensuring it reaches the deserving recipients."
KSrelief also has a specialized monitoring and evaluation department and a team to monitor and evaluate the aid provided, utilizing the latest methods and international standards to measure its effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability.
