Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on World Humanitarian Day

Humanitarian aid workers stand shoulder to shoulder with people where hardship and despair are at their greatest. They provide assistance under the most difficult conditions - in the midst of wars, displacement and natural disasters - and deserve respect, recognition and protection for their selfless dedication. In 2025, 350 humanitarian aid workers were killed, including many local staff members of aid organisations. On World Humanitarian Day, the focus is on their plight. Humanitarian aid workers must be granted safe and unhindered access to people in need. Attacks against them can never be tolerated as they violate international humanitarian law.

The number of people who depend on humanitarian assistance remains alarmingly high. With nearly 240 million people whose lives would be at risk without humanitarian assistance, looking the other way is not an option: families forced to flee violence; undernourished children; people who have lost everything. In a world in which crises are on the rise and conflicts are becoming increasingly brutal, the scale of the suffering is, unfortunately, growing at a faster rate than the resources available to alleviate it.

Germany therefore remains an indispensable partner for international aid organisations - particularly in acute emergencies. In the Sudan, nearly 20 million people are starving; this is the most severe humanitarian crisis of our time - we have raised urgently needed funds internationally to alleviate the worst of this suffering as part of the international Sudan conference in Berlin. In Ukraine, people suffer every day from Russia's war of aggression and its devastating consequences. We are helping here to ensure that Putin's strategy to depopulate the country does not succeed. We are helping to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, protecting people on the ground and reducing the risk to the entire region in the process. It is clear that rapid and effective aid is often a matter of life and death also following natural disasters such as the severe earthquakes in Venezuela.

This year, the Federal Government has helped to ensure that over 80 million people in 54 countries around the world can be provided with aid that is essential for survival. Humanitarian assistance does not merely alleviate immediate suffering. By creating prospects and strengthening stability, it curbs the causes of displacement and can pave the way for peace and reconstruction. Humanitarian assistance is therefore not only a humanitarian imperative but is also in Germany's security and economic interests. I therefore advocate ensuring sufficient funding levels in this area in the years to come.