Private funding for international humanitarian response continues in face of recession, report says

"Individuals, businesses and foundations have continued to give money to humanitarian and development organizations despite harsh economic times, providing a crucial source of funding in the face of declining official aid," according to a report on private aid funding by the monitoring group Global Humanitarian Assistance (GHA), the Guardian reports. The news service writes, "According to the report, 24 percent of the international humanitarian response from 2006 to 2010" -- at least $18 billion -- "came from private voluntary contributions"; "[i]n 2010 alone, $5.8 billion was donated privately, mainly in response to the earthquake in Haiti and the floods in Pakistan"; and "[a]s a share of the total humanitarian response, private funding grew from 17 percent in 2006 to 32 percent in 2010."

The news service provides figures from the report on funding of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), noting, "NGOs have benefited the most from private support, receiving a 70 percent increase in private funding between 2009 and 2010." The Guardian adds, "The strength of private giving comes against a backdrop of declining official development assistance. The OECD club of rich countries last week reported that 2011 marked the first drop in the value of aid for 17 years; inflation wiped out the increase in cash terms, while some countries cut back on development aid" (Tran, 4/13).