Humanitarian funding review recommendations: Scottish Government response

Introduction

Humanitarian crises driven by armed conflict, natural disasters, the accelerating climate emergency and health epidemics are leaving millions of people around the world in need of urgent, life-saving assistance. This scale of humanitarian need is predicted to persist, if not intensify, in the years ahead as conflicts and climate-related disaster fuel displacement, famine and health emergencies. While the number of people affected by humanitarian emergencies grows, those providing assistance must work in increasingly unsafe, complex and inaccessible environments. A global decline in humanitarian funding is limiting the ability of organisations that provide humanitarian assistance to plan and to implement proactive, effective and timely response.

The Scottish Government is proud of its long commitment to supporting those most in need. In 2017, we formalised our humanitarian support by establishing the Humanitarian Emergency Fund (HEF) which has since provided a dedicated £1 million a year for responses to humanitarian emergencies overseas.

Since 2017, the allocation of funds from the HEF has been guided by a panel of eight humanitarian aid organisations, based in Scotland, and appointed to our standing HEF Panel (currently appointed members are: British Red Cross, Christian Aid, Islamic Relief, Mercy Corps, Oxfam, Save the Children, SCIAF and Tearfund) and administered by the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) as secretariat. As well as their work in delivering humanitarian assistance on the ground, either directly or through local partners, these organisations have provided guidance and expertise to the Scottish Government on delivering our humanitarian funding effectively. The Scottish Government is grateful for their work and partnership.

Since its establishment, the HEF has funded humanitarian response in 26 countries affected by conflict, natural disaster, famine and public health crises.

The dedicated £1 million budget for the HEF has been periodically bolstered by additional funding to address acute humanitarian need. This has facilitated the flexible and rapid deployment of funds in response to international crises and has included additional funding in response to conflict in the Middle East and Ukraine and in response to natural disasters in Pakistan, Malawi and Türkiye and Syria.

Our broader work through our International Development Fund (IDF) in relation to our partner countries, and through our Climate Justice Fund also contribute to humanitarian objectives.