For the first time in the 70-year history of the United Nations, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon convened the World Humanitarian Summit to generate commitments to reduce suffering and deliver better for people around the globe. The Summit took place in Istanbul on 23-24 May 2016.
In the lead up to the Summit, eight regional multistakeholder consultations were conducted. These resulted in a Synthesis Report. This report then informed the UN Secretary-General's Report on the WHS: One Humanity, Shared Responsibility. The UN Secretary-General's Report outlined five core areas of responsibilities around which the discussions at the WHS focused: political leadership to prevent and end conflicts; uphold the norms that safeguard humanity; leave no one behind; change people’s lives — from delivering aid to ending need; and invest in humanity.
Following the Summit, a Chair's Summary was released summarizing the key commitments and discussions in the Announcement Plenary, Roundtables, Special Sessions and Side Events. A Commitment to Action document is currently being prepared that will detail all commitments made at the Summit. It will be released soon. The UN Secretary-General is also due to made a report to the UN General Assembly on the success of the WHS.
For more information on the World Humanitarian Summit, please visit their website: http://worldhumanitariansummit.org/.
IASC Engagement in the WHSThe IASC engaged in the World Humanitarian Summit since the outset of the process through submitting documents for consideration, hosting and taking part in events, and working closely with the WHS secretariat and thematic teams. The WHS had also provided numerous briefings to the IASC community.