Friday, August 19, 2016 is World Humanitarian Day

The United Nations' (UN) World Humanitarian Day is held on August 19 each year. It is a day dedicated to humanitarians worldwide, as well as to increase public understanding of humanitarian assistance activities. On December 2008, at the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, it was decided to designate 19 August as World Humanitarian Day and it was first observed on August 2009. Because, 5 years ago, on 19th August, 2003, a brutal terrorist attack on UN headquarters in Baghdad killed 22 people, including UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. Sergio was a Brazilian United Nations diplomat who worked for the UN for more than 34 years. It is a day of global observance and not a public holiday. World Humanitarian Day does not have a logo; neither has it belonged to the UN or any other agency or organization. Notable humanitarians who provide life-saving assistance to millions of people worldwide, often risking their own lives in conflict zones and areas of natural hazards are honored every year on this day for their contribution towards mankind. It is a time when we recognize those heroic aid workers and the millions of people who count on them for their very survival.

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