25/10/2002
Remembering forgotten Humanitarian Crises

The European Union's Humanitarian Aid Office ECHO supported an international one-day conference entitled "Forgotten Humanitarian crises - the role of the media, decision-makers and humanitarian agencies ". Organised in Copenhagen by the Danish Refugee Council and other Danish NGO partners on 23 October, the conference focused on media and donor responses to "forgotten crises. "

Forgotten crises are those where humanitarian needs remain high but where press coverage and donor response are low. Poul Nielson, the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid together with Costanza Adinolfi, the Director of ECHO, was among the keynote speakers at this event which coincides with the Danish Presidency of the EU. Other main participants included representatives of the Danish government, Member States, journalists, relief workers and researchers.

The conference objective is to inspire the main players to reflect upon their own roles, and ultimately to raise public awareness about forgotten humanitarian crises. Commenting on the initiative, Mr Nielson said: ECHO is deeply concerned by the problem of the 'forgotten crises' and we are pleased to be able to work together with Danish NGOs and the Presidency to draw attention to this problem. He continued : ECHO's mandate is to help the most vulnerable and not simply to 'follow the cameras. ' A lack of media coverage can lead to less interest from donors and unmet needs among the victims. In 2000, when the Mozambique floods hit the headlines, ECHO responded providing nearly €10 million. But, in the same year, there were several other major crises attracting far less media attention to which ECHO allocated higher amounts .