There is no doubt that thousands of Haitians are suffering from an enormous disaster that warrants a strong international humanitarian response. Refugees International supports the relief efforts underway, as it’s clear that immediate humanitarian assistance is critical.  In the coming weeks and months we hope the crisis will stabilize, allowing for longer-term thinking about reconstruction and development. As Haiti moves away from this tragic event toward a brighter future, countries and aid groups must remain engaged and committed. Anything less may result in a protracted or chronic humanitarian crisis for the people of Haiti. 

This is true for Haiti, but it is also true for a number of ongoing humanitarian crises around the world.  When aid is abruptly ended before basic needs are met and development projects are in place, the consequences can be tragic.

This is why it’s so upsetting that the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) within the U.S. Agency for International Development was forced to announce a 40% cut for all regions where they deliver humanitarian assistance. They plan to funnel the limited funds available to Haiti. This could affect future projects, proposals and planning and create a gap that will have serious ramifications for humanitarian crises around the world.  While emergency supplemental funding legislation could help avoid creating a significant gap, the timeline for that funding is unclear.

This difficult decision points to the serious need for OFDA to have an easily accessible and flexible contingency fund for unanticipated emergencies. Without such a fund, it is plausible and perhaps even likely that when a new crisis dominates the headlines next year, the people of Haiti may experience similar funding cuts as they continue their recovery. This strategy is unsustainable. 

Two countries exemplify this problem. In Somalia, where 3.2 million are in need of humanitarian assistance, program cuts may result in health, water and sanitation shortages and likely lead to increased mortality rates.  The cuts may also destroy the extremely delicate networks that have been developed over time to ensure that humanitarian assistance can be delivered in places where there is extreme violence and insecurity.  Rebuilding those networks will not be easy.  Moreover, the international community suffers from “donor fatigue” in Somalia.  So while hundreds of millions of dollars have been raised for Haiti relief and recovery efforts from the private sector, it will be more challenging to raise funds for Somalia’s equally compelling crisis.  

In eastern DR Congo, more than one million people remain internally displaced due to ongoing violence between armed groups. U.S. funding for the humanitarian crisis has been crucial in the wider international efforts to meet the needs of the Congolese people.  Funding from OFDA has been able to sustain vulnerable populations with lifesaving assistance.  Increased U.S. funding towards efforts to protect victims of sexual violence in the DRC has also played a vital role in responding to and mitigating one of the main protection concerns for women and girls.  And in areas where displaced people have begun to slowly return home, OFDA funds have been crucial in supporting people who are rebuilding their homes and their lives. Efforts being made to create a more stable and peaceful Congo could easily unravel as U.S. funding dries up, even if only temporarily.  The gains being made here, particularly for those returning home, remain fragile and need to be strengthened and secured if they are to hold.  

The U.S. Congress should move quickly to create a contingency fund for OFDA to immediately respond to unexpected crises without dipping into assistance programs for other equally needy countries. The Congressional Budget and Appropriations Committees can be the first to address this problem by increasing funding for humanitarian and refugee programs as it begins to deliberate President Obama’s current budget request for 2010.