The contribution of aid workers celebrated on World Humanitarian Day

(Vatican Radio) All around the world, day in day out,  in places  ridden by conflict and food insecurity, aid workers tirelessly help those in need often putting themselves in danger in the process. On this World Humanitarian Day marked on August 19^th each year, these unsung humanitarian heroes are being remembered for the work that they do to help millions of children, women and men build a better future for themselves.

Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s interview with George Fominyen, Public Information Officer for the UN World Food Programme (WFP) in Juba South Sudan.

The UN World Food programme is one of the aid agencies that is celebrating the contribution made by humanitarian workers.

There are currently 14,200 people working for WFP making a difference in countries racked by malnutrition and strife.

One of those countries is South Sudan, a nation with a legacy of civil war and under development even before it gained independence in 2011.

A fresh outbreak of conflict which began in December of 2013 has seen the humanitarian situation deteriorate further, leading to displacement, hunger and disease.

“Many of these people have been isolated by conflict, many of them have seen their livelihoods disrupted because of this conflict, many of them are in place where they are not able to access what they need”, says George Fominyen, Public Information Officer for WFP in Juba.

He adds that since the start of the conflict his colleagues on the ground have been working around the clock to provide assistance to the thousands of people affected.

In a country such as South Sudan where the security situation is tense and aid workers are risking their lives, Mr Fominyen says he has nothing but praise for those in the field.

“I’m in awe sometimes of my colleagues who are deploying every day in these hard to reach areas, in these remote isolated locations… insecurity remains a significant challenge and we have had to evacuate teams from a number of locations when fighting has broken out…”

So, what is it that motivates these men and women to keep on going despite the many difficulties they face on a daily basis. George Fominyen says he has asked his colleagues the same question and he adds that one of his colleagues told him,  “You know that the work that WFP does saves lives,”

George goes on to say, that when you manage to distribute food in areas besieged by conflict or ravaged by hunger, “You realize at that moment that you have contributed to something, you have helped someone in need. That’s the feeling that most of most of the colleagues I have spoken to have and that’s what they think spurs them on.”