New UN humanitarian overview gives gloomy outlook for 2023

GENEVA - The "2023 Global Humanitarian Overview" launched on Thursday by the United Nations (UN) in collaboration with non-governmental organizations and other humanitarian partners paints a stark picture of what lies ahead.

At least 222 million people in 53 countries will face acute food insecurity by the end of 2022, with 45 million people in 37 countries risking starvation.

The report shows that public health is still under pressure due to COVID-19, monkeypox, vector-borne diseases and outbreaks of Ebola and cholera, and at the same time climate change is driving up risks and vulnerability.

"By the end of the century, extreme heat could claim as many lives as cancer," it says.

According to the report, it will take four generations, or 132 years, to achieve global gender parity, and globally 388 million women and girls are living in extreme poverty.

As a result of various crises, next year will set another record for humanitarian relief requirements, with 339 million people in need of assistance in 68 countries, an increase of 65 million people compared to last year.

The estimated cost of the humanitarian response going into 2023 is $51.5 billion, a 25 percent increase compared to the beginning of 2022, the report says.

"Humanitarian needs are shockingly high, as this year's extreme events are spilling into 2023," UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths said.

"For people on the brink, this $51.5 billion US appeal is a lifeline. For the international community, it is a strategy to make good on the pledge to leave no one behind," he said.