Burkina Faso has been named the world’s most neglected displacement crisis by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) for the second year.
In its annual report, released Monday, the NRC said the West African country saw a record-high 707,000 new displacements in 2023, driven by escalating violence and a worsening humanitarian crisis.
Nine out of the 10 most neglected crises outlined in the report were in Africa, with Cameroon, Central African Republic, Mali, and Niger holding the second to fifth positions respectively.
The NRC said in a press release Monday its criteria for neglected displacement crises are: “lack of humanitarian funding, lack of media attention, and a lack of international political and diplomatic initiatives compared to the number of people in need.”
The NCR report said 2023 saw a record-breaking shortfall in aid budgets of around $32 billion, leaving more than half of humanitarian needs worldwide unmet.
Neglect now ‘the new normal’
The report said media coverage of the displacement crisis in Burkina Faso and international political engagement with the crisis were “negligible” in 2023, adding that only 37% of requested humanitarian funding had been received by the country, leaving a significant gap in aid.
“The utter neglect of displaced people has become the new normal
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