20 June is World Refugee Day - We all need a home
20/06/2012 - Every year, natural disasters, conflicts and human rights violations are forcing millions of people to leave their homes and to flee from destruction, violence and persecution. Their survival often depends on international assistance and protection.
Today, there are more than 43 million people in need of help and protection as a consequence of forced displacement, including refugees and internal displaced persons (IDPs). Globally, some 26 million people are IDPs, compared to around 15-16 million refugees and a further 1 million asylum-seekers.
20th June was designated World Refugee Day by the UN General Assembly in 2001 on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the UN refugee convention and UNHCR. A special day was dedicated to refugees in order to draw more international attention to the plight of these people, whose number exceeds 43 million today, on the need to help them survive where they are, and on the need to help them return to their homes or find a new place to rebuild their lives.
Refugees are among the most vulnerable in humanitarian crises. This is why the European Commission mobilises substantial humanitarian resources to help them. The Commission allocates some 15% of its annual humanitarian aid budget (which exceeds 1 billion EUR) to projects supporting refugees and IDPs.
Humanitarian aid for refugees delivered by the European Commission helps:
- addressing the root causes for migration;
- meeting the most pressing needs of refugees and IDPs;
- supporting and protecting refugees and IDPs during their displacement and when returning to their place of origin;
- strengthening the capacities of the humanitarian organisations, which specialise on helping refugees.
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| No one chooses to be a refugee! | Colombian refugees in Ecuador | Palestininan refugees in Lebanon |