19 August: World Humanitarian Day

"I was here" - People helping people

Campaign 2012 "I was here"Burkina Faso: first aid officers, trained by the Order of Malta, provide the transport of sick Malian refugees in the health centres.Haiti: Hygiene awareness starts at school - children learn how to wash their hands.

More than 60 million people worldwide are in urgent need of humanitarian aid according to OCHA, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Food, tents, drinking water, medicine or cloths - humanitarian workers distribute these relief goods in numerous crisis regions worldwide, often risking their own lives. Their mission is not only to provide emergency relief, but also to implement rehabilitation measures and to support sustainable development by establishing and promoting primary health care services and reducing vulnerability and poverty. 19 August is World Humanitarian Day, a global day to celebrate the great commitment of so many humanitarian aid workers and the spirit of people helping people.

More than 1,000 staff members of Malteser International in over 100 projects worldwide work to carry out Malteser International's mission: to make sure all people hava a chance to live a healthy life with dignity. On the occasion of World humanitarian Day, Malteser International would like to present some of its staff members as well as some of the people whose lives have changed to the positive thanks to their commitment:

PORTRAITS OF OUR HELP

"I WAS HERE"

Every day we see and hear images and stories of pain and suffering in our own neighborhoods and in countries far away. But we also find acts of kindness, great and small. World Humanitarian Day is a global celebration of people helping people.

This year’s campaign "I was here" -launched by the United Nations in cooperation with international humanitarian organisation and the famous singer Beyoncé - is about making your mark by doing something good, somewhere, for someone else.

To show your support for World Humanitarian Day visit www.whd-iwashere.org

Background information:
Every year on 19 August, World Humanitarian Day recognizes those who face danger and adversity to help others. 19 August is the anniversary of the 2003 bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq, which killed 22 people.  On this day, the international community pays tribute to all of the humanitarian workers who have lost their lives doing their job and to all who continue to help people around the world, regardless of who they are and where they are, and it  reiterates the message that humanitarians should be given safe and secure access to the victims of human-made and natural disasters without exception.