Humanitarian assistance aims to help those affected by natural disasters, human conflict and other forms of severe political, economic or social breakdowns. Its objective is to prevent and alleviate human suffering in the context of life-threatening situations. This is mainly done through the short-term provision of emergency goods and services to affected areas, although initial humanitarian relief operations often evolve into longer-term reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts.
There are a number of factors that make humanitarian assistance particularly prone to corruption. The large influx of external resources, both financial and in kind, the urgency of delivering relief and reconstruction supplies and the breakdown of local institutions and public services, all exacerbate the risks of corruption in emergency situations. Relief supplies and services – including food, water, shelter and health care – can, as a result of corruption, be diverted away from affected communities or distributed unequally.
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