Dubai Humanitarian marked World Humanitarian Day 2025 by hosting a gathering at its headquarters in partnership with the UN Resident Coordinator Office in the UAE, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and the UAE Aid Agency. The event, held under the theme “Act for Humanity,” brought together representatives from United Nations agencies, local aid organizations, international NGOs, and government partners.
The program included speeches from key officials and a minute of silence to honor humanitarian workers who have lost their lives while serving others. Giuseppe Saba, CEO and Board Member of Dubai Humanitarian, opened the event by highlighting the need for ongoing collaboration across sectors. He said: “World Humanitarian Day is a powerful reminder of our shared humanity and responsibility. As an active participant in the humanitarian ecosystem, Dubai Humanitarian bears witness to the great sacrifices humanitarian workers make. We stand in solidarity with all those affected by crises, aid workers and civilians alike, and reaffirm our commitment to delivering hope, dignity, and support wherever it is needed, no matter the challenge or distance.”
HE Bérangère Boëll, UN Resident Coordinator for the UAE, stated: “On this World Humanitarian Day, we honor those we have lost and the courage of those who continue to serve. But remembrance must be matched by resolve, to protect civilians, to defend international humanitarian law, and to ensure that aid is never blocked, never politicized, and never forgotten.”
HE Rashed Alhemeri of UAE Aid highlighted that humanitarian assistance is central to UAE policy. He noted that 40% of its total foreign assistance over two years has been directed toward humanitarian response efforts. He said: “The humanitarian aid is in the DNA of the UAE and the guidance and directives of our leaders have pushed the UAE’s global humanitarian response to higher levels. The UAE allocated 40% of its total foreign assistance during the last two years to the humanitarian response. We commemorate the UAE’s humanitarian martyrs and all others who lost their lives while helping others. Rashid Al Hemeir also referred to 2025, the Year of the Community and its slogan ‘hand in hand’ and stressed that it is only by working together as partners that we can address the serious challenges the humanitarian work is facing especially to access people in need and avail the resources required.”
Sajeda Shawa from OCHA’s UAE office addressed current risks faced by aid workers worldwide. She remarked: “Today, after more than two decades since the horrific explosion in 2003, the dangers have only grown. In 2024 alone, 383 humanitarian workers were killed – the highest number ever recorded. This year we are already counting devastating losses.
We face unprecedented challenges. 300 million people are in urgent need of assistance this year yet humanitarian operations are only 18 per cent funded. Millions will go without food medicine or protection. These are steepest cuts we have ever faced – and cost will be measured in lives That is why OCHA’s Humanitarian Reset is about more than reform it is about renewal We are putting people not systems at center We are shifting power local communities cutting through inefficiency recommitting essence protecting life with dignity,” added Shawa.
World Humanitarian Day was established by United Nations General Assembly resolution in 2008 following an attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad five years earlier; it aims each year on August 19th both to honor fallen humanitarians as well as reinforce principles protecting civilians caught up or working within crisis zones.
