Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Tēnā koutou katoa,
Good afternoon everyone,
I would like to thank the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for convening this important event, and to acknowledge the 15th anniversary of the Central Emergency Relief Fund (CERF).
I would also like to acknowledge the opening remarks made by His Excellency António Guterres and Martin Griffiths.
The CERF is a proven mechanism for rapidly responding to humanitarian and underfunded crises. Its innovative approach continues to catalyse humanitarian action and improve the humanitarian system, and it remains one of the most effective tools for donors to play their part in responding to major global humanitarian crises.
We welcome the CERF’s focus on cash assistance, and on anticipatory action. We support the CERF showing how anticipatory action can be scaled-up across the humanitarian system.
We also welcome recent moves by the CERF in support of inclusive humanitarian action, including addressing gender based violence, and in seeking and incorporating expert advice on gender and disability considerations.
We see the CERF as being most effective when it maintains its focus on life-saving interventions, and when emphasis is placed on rapid response.
CERF’s effective, innovative and catalytic approach, along with its global reach enables donors like Aotearoa New Zealand to contribute to a wide range of humanitarian crises we otherwise would not be able to support directly. This is why we provide multi-year funding to the CERF.
Aoteaora New Zealand makes an annual un-earmarked contribution of NZ$3 million to the CERF.
In recent years, we have also periodically made additional contributions, with the latest of these being NZ$2.5m in December 2020 in recognition of the role that the CERF is playing in addressing the unprecedented levels of food insecurity and in famine mitigation.
Today, Aotearoa New Zealand is pleased to pledge a further NZ$3 million a year for the coming three years.
We are proud to support the efforts of the CERF and remain committed to being a predictable, reliable donor to support the humanitarian system to respond to priorities swiftly, efficiently and inclusively.
In closing, we acknowledge the important work the CERF does, and we thank you, USG Griffiths for your continued leadership of the CERF and of the UN humanitarian system. We thank all humanitarian workers for their dedication.
You can count on us for continued support.