The New Humanitarian

Hala al-Karib shares how the days unfolded when the violence started in Sudan, and what some of the root causes are according to her, including the failings of the international community. Today's essay was written and read out by Hala al-Karib. She is the regional director of SIHA - the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa. The New Humanitarian aims to amplify the voices of refugees, asylum seekers, and people affected by conflict and disaster - placing them at the centre of the conversations about the policies and events that shape their lives.

The New Humanitarian aims to amplify the voices of refugees, asylum seekers, and people affected by conflict and disaster - placing them at the centre of the conversations about the policies and events that shape their lives. Today's essay was written and read out by Liban Mahamad. He is a freelance journalist and writer from Somalia. In his essay, Liban looks at the limitations of international aid in Somalia, and in particular at how its short-termism risks perpetuating a cycle of need for millions of Somalis. Liban's recording also features the natural sounds of Dolow in southern Somalia, where he recorded his essay: The New Humanitarian

Flipping the Narrative is an ongoing series by The New Humanitarian. It aims to amplify the voices of refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants, placing them at the centre of the conversations about the policies and events that shape their lives. Today's essay was written and read out by Sana Mustafa. She is a feminist human rights defender and CEO of Asylum Access. In her essay, Sana looks at power imbalances within the international refugee protection system, and calls for those who have been forcibly displaced themselves to have much more say in the decision-making. Read more from The Flipping The Narrative series here.

Christian Saunders was appointed as the UN's special coordinator on improving the response to sexual exploitation and abuse in July. The New Humanitarian's Investigations Editor Paisley Dodds spoke with him on 19 April following his recent trip to South Sudan, where allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation surfaced last year at a UN-run camp for civilians in the northern city of Malakal. In their wide-ranging interview, Saunders says he believes in "radical transparency", he doesn't think the UN should be investigating itself, and he agrees it's time to retire the phrase "zero tolerance". Read more: https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/investigations and more on this interview here: https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/interview/2023/04/24/interview-fixing-un-sex-abuse-problem

Does the humanitarian sector have something to learn from this celebrity's approach to relief work? Chef José Andrés took his cooking skills to disaster zones and began distributing hot meals to people in need, via the NGO he founded: World Central Kitchen. Their model is simple: Respond quickly after a disaster by tapping into resources already available in affected communities – local chefs – and without all the bureaucracy of a big aid organisation. In this episode of Rethinking Humanitarianism, we explore the pros and cons of taking a different approach to humanitarianism: José Andrés says he treats his beneficiaries like "guests" at a restaurant. He speaks of the need for smaller, more specialised, more agile organisations that don't try to be everything to everyone and pursue endless growth. And he advocates for an approach where people feel they are not working for an organisation, but for their own communities. Humanitarianism, he says, can't remain about throwing crumbs to the poor. Guest: José Andrés, chef and founder of World Central Kitchen

At the European Humanitarian Forum, The New Humanitarian's CEO Heba Aly moderates a panel on principled humanitarian action in Ukraine.

Are more equitable trade policies possible at a time many countries are turning to protectionism? Why have developing countries and emerging economies not benefited as much from the globalised trade architecture as multinational corporations and international investors? And what needs to change for global trade to be more equitable? This episode of Rethinking Humanitarianism explores whether a re-imagined global trading system could reduce aid needs in the Global South. Guests: Nick Dearden, Director Global Justice Now; Gyude Moore, former Liberian Minister of Public Works and Senior Fellow at the Center for Global Development.

The COVID-19 pandemic showed that the current global health architecture is not fit for purpose. While rich countries hoarded vaccines, low and middle income countries were left behind, coping with massive global healthcare inequalities. Despite lofty promises, COVAX, the global initiative launched during the pandemic to ensure a fair and equitable distribution of tests, treatments, and vaccines failed to deliver on its promises. This episode of Rethinking Humanitarianism explores how the global health architecture can be adjusted to make it more inclusive, and better placed to respond in a more equitable way during a future pandemic. Guests: Petro Terblanche, managing director of Afrigen; Fifa Rahman, civil society representative at the ACT-Accelerator

For one week every year, some of the world's richest business people and most powerful politicians descend on the Alpine ski town of Davos, Switzerland. They're here for the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting, which bills itself as the premiere global forum for the public and private sectors to join forces to "drive tangible, systemic change for the future". But systemic change would require them to give up some of their wealth and power, like paying their fair share of taxes, or ending the stranglehold a few, mostly Western countries have over the UN's Security Council. All the proposals for a more equitable world order that we've heard on this season of the podcast depend on those who have power giving some of it up. Are they willing to do so? Critics say the global elite's eagerness to solve the world's problems lasts only as long as the solutions don't threaten their said wealth and power. So how are movements to reshape global governance landing with those who represent the status quo? And can advocates and campaigners for change ever really sway the global elite? Host Heba Aly takes the pulse at Davos to find out. Hear from UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima, Opens Society Foundations President Mark Malloch Brown, former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark, president of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation Vilas Dhar, director general of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Patricia Danzi, and others. ————— If you have thoughts on this episode, write to us or send us a voice note at podcast@thenewhumanitarian.org. SHOW NOTES Director's Dispatch: Aid and the elite Richest 1% bag nearly twice as much wealth as the rest of the world put together over the past two years | Oxfam International UN boss to Davos: You're the problem | POLITICO

The effects of the war in Ukraine continue to ripple across the globe. We are near the point of no return for those on the front lines of the climate crisis. Soaring public debt is preventing governments from being able to prepare for crises. These trends are shaping the world – and humanitarian needs – in 2023. But what are policymakers doing about them? Listen to policymakers from both donor and national governments as they discuss their priorities for the year ahead with civil society representatives in this online conversation hosted by The New Humanitarian on 13 January. ————— If you have thoughts on this episode, write to us or send us a voice note at podcast@thenewhumanitarian.org. SHOW NOTES Trends driving humanitarian crises in 2023 (and what to do about them) Key humanitarian aid policy trends to watch in 2023 Why these 10 humanitarian crises demand your attention now