The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) fears that it will miss up to a quarter of its budget in 2023 and risks having to make cuts in certain operations, its director general Robert Mardini told Swiss media. .
For lack of sufficient donations, it could miss 500 to 700 million Swiss francs (about as many euros) from the 2.79 billion budget of the ICRC planned for this year, explained Robert Mardini to the daily Le
Temps
.
"
If this is confirmed, we will no longer have the means to help the populations in the places most difficult to access, where our presence is the most important
", he underlined.
A “trend” accentuated by Ukraine
“
There are obviously fewer donations for humanitarian aid in general.
This trend is now accentuated with the
conflict between Russia and Ukraine
", he explained to public radio RTS, adding that "
the communities affected by these crises find themselves forgotten by the international community which is not not meeting the challenges
”.
Of the 10 most important operations of the organization, which celebrates its 160th anniversary this year, only Ukraine has positive funding prospects.
All other operations (Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria) are underfunded, explains the humanitarian manager.
A phenomenon that is not specific to the ICRC but is also observed by the UN agencies involved in humanitarian action.
To read also "I was able to see the strength of the emblem of the Red Cross": the evacuation of civilians from Mariupol told by a member of the ICRC
Conflict fatigue
In addition to Ukraine, which monopolizes significant funds from major donor countries, other factors explain the lack of funds: a certain fatigue with the conflicts that have lasted for years as illustrated by a recent appeal for funds for Yemen which has collected, for the time being, barely more than a quarter of what is estimated to be necessary.
Galloping inflation also makes interventions much more expensive.
“
The next few months will be decisive.
We will have to, if the donors are not there, revise our ambitions downwards
,” admits Robert Mardini.
This is one of the reasons why he launched his appeal at the beginning of the year to be able to gauge the response of donors.
“
And then, based on that response, we will do what we need to do to ensure a financial balance.
»