Monitoring
Monitoring
We are closely monitoring a number of humanitarian disasters and assessing them against our criteria for launching an appeal.
A camp for displaced people in northwest Syria in December 2020. Image: Abdul Sattar Al-Nasser/DEC
The DEC has three criteria which must be met before we launch an appeal.
We often monitor crises that don't yet meet our criteria but may do in the future. Often our member charities are responding to these crises already and we encourage people who wish to help to donate to them. Alternatively you can donate to our Emergency Fund which will support the DEC’s next appeal, whether it’s a natural disaster, disease outbreak, or a crisis fuelled by drought or conflict.
Find out more about which crises we are monitoring below.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
The DEC is very concerned about the recent outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The World Health Organisation has called it a "public health emergency of international concern", and the death toll continues to rise.
Ongoing conflict around the city of Goma and across North and South Kivu region of the DRC has already caused massive population displacement and dire humanitarian need. People are living in extremely difficult conditions without access to the hygiene and sanitation supplies needed to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.
We are monitoring the situation closely and assessing it against our criteria for launching a national fundraising appeal in the UK. Those criteria are not currently met. A number of DEC charities are working in the DRC now and supporting people impacted by Ebola and the conflict. If you would like to help you can donate to their appeals:
Middle East Escalation
The DEC is extremely concerned about the latest escalation of conflict in the Middle East, and the humanitarian impact on people across the region. We are monitoring the situation closely.
The DEC launched the Middle East Humanitarian Appeal in October 2024, and DEC charities and their local partners are continuing to provide vital humanitarian support to families affected by conflict in Gaza, Lebanon, the West Bank and Syria. Donations to the DEC Middle East Humanitarian Appeal are not currently funding their response outside of those locations.
Sudan Conflict
Conflict broke out in Sudan in April 2023 and has seen intense fighting, including in the capital, Khartoum and the Darfur region.
In El Fasher, a city in the north of Darfur, tens of thousands of people are facing severe shortages of food and supplies after an 18-month siege on the city, which ended in late October.
Thousands of newly displaced people have arrived in the nearby Tawila, joining around 400,000 people already displaced and living there, putting immense strain on already limited resources and services.
The UN reports that over 9.5 million people remain displaced inside Sudan, with a further 4 million people having fled into neighbouring countries. It is estimated that over 30 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in 2025.
Our members are responding inside Sudan across White and Blue Nile, Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Al Jazirah. In neighbouring countries, members are responding across the borders in Chad, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Central African Republic, supporting refugees and returnees to these countries. Response priorities include food security, protection, health, nutrition, shelter, and WASH.
The DEC is deeply concerned for the safety of civilians caught up in the fighting and the current humanitarian crisis. We are monitoring the situation closely and assessing it against our criteria for launching a national fundraising appeal in the UK.
Those criteria are not currently met, but several DEC member charities have a presence in Sudan or neighbouring countries. If you would like to help them respond and help people affected by this crisis, you can donate to the following DEC charities:
