UN Secretary-General's message on World Humanitarian Day | 19 August 2022

New York, 19 August 2022

There is a saying: “It takes a village to raise a child.” It also takes a village to support people living through a humanitarian crisis. This village includes affected people who are always first to respond when disasters strike — neighbours helping neighbours. It includes a global community pulling together to support them as they recover and rebuild. And it includes hundreds of thousands of individual humanitarians — volunteers and professionals alike. Delivering health care and education. Food and water. Shelter and protection. Help and hope. Far from the spotlight and out of the headlines, humanitarians work around the clock to make our world a better place. Against incredible odds, often at great personal risk, they ease suffering in some of the most dangerous circumstances imaginable. Today, the number of people who need humanitarian assistance has never been higher, because of conflicts, climate change, COVID-19, poverty, hunger and unprecedented levels of displacement. On this year’s World Humanitarian Day, we celebrate humanitarians everywhere. We salute their dedication and courage, and pay tribute to those who lost their lives in pursuit of this noble cause. They represent the best of humanity.