Over 170 heads of governments and states, meeting at the September 2005 UN “World Summit“ in New York, agreed on a common responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

In international politics, the readiness to proclaim humanitarian targets is known to be greater than the collective willingness to act accordingly. The strategic importance of some critical hot spots is so insignificant to donor governments that they do not care about investing much in resolving a conflict. In some cases, the resources committed do not even meet the basic requirements of humanitarian aid.

The international mechanisms for humanitarian assistance – that is basic care for victims of violent conflicts and natural disasters, including the provision of vital goods as well as protection from further physical threats – are inefficient and, in parts, chaotic.

In the following we will elaborate on the causes for these severe deficiencies, looking in particular at financing mechanisms for humanitarian aid. Within the UN system, however, there are already some structures in existence, whose further development could lead to significant improvements.