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| >> Foreign Aid in the National Interest >> Chapter 5 >> Humanitarian aid in the 1990's | ||
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Jump to Chapter 5 Sections:
Natural disastersFamines and other natural disasters continued to take a tremendous toll worldwide. But natural disasters are neither simple nor purely natureinduced. And their devastation in global economic terms and for affected populations far outstrips the damage caused by conflicts. For the 1990s the number of deaths due to natural disasters is estimated at 665,000. This, despite the benefits of early warning and disaster preparedness measures as well as advances in such basic services as clean water and sanitation. The number of reported disasters has skyrocketed, with three times as many in the 1990s as in the 1960s. Earthquakes and volcano eruptions have held fairly steady in number, but disasters related to water and weather have increased dramatically (figure 5.1). During 1991-95 there were three El Niño-Southern Oscillation phenomena, causing devastating droughts in Southern Africa in 1991-92, 1993-94, and 1994-95. In 1997-98 this weather pattern struck again, affecting temperatures and rainfall around the world. South and Central America experienced devastating floods and landslides in some areas, droughts in others. Southeast Asia experienced droughts and fires, while East Africa suffered heavy rains and floods. In 1998 Hurricane Mitch swept across Central America, killing 10,000 people and setting development in the region back by decades. The 1999 Orissa cyclone in India killed 10,000-40,000 people and devastated the lives of millions. And the 2000 floods in Mozambique were the most devastating to hit the country in 150 years, generating the largest air rescue operation (by nine national air forces) ever mounted in a short period. By the end of 2000 internal conflict and repression had generated 14.5 million refugees and asylum seekers worldwide and nearly 25 million people displaced within their own countries (figure 5.2). The number of refugees, just below 10 million in 1984, peaked at 16.3 million in 1993-94, then began to fall. Significant refugee repatriations from peace agreements in Cambodia, Mozambique, Namibia, and Central America contributed to the decline. But continued conflicts in Africa (especially in the Great Lakes region) and elsewhere partly offset these gains. At the end of 2000 the three largest refugee populations-Palestinians (4.0 million), Afghans (3.6 million), and Sudanese (460,000) made up more than half the total. In addition, 6 of the top 10 refugee-generating countries were in Africa. page 2 |
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