Here are four reasons why Yemen remains near the top of the International Rescue Committee's Watchlist of the worst humanitarian crises in 2023.

As we mark 12 years of the Syrian conflict, a new report documents how targeted violence against health care personnel and infrastructure has impeded vital sexual and reproductive health (SRH) care, resulting in far-reaching tolls on the health and wellbeing of women, girls, and health care professionals. The devastating earthquake that struck southern Türkyie and northern Syria in February 2023 has compounded already precarious access to health care in the region, contributing to the collapse of the fragile health care system in northwest Syria.

Nyarugusu Camp in Northwestern Tanzania is home to over 66,000 people, providing refuge to Congolese and Burundians who fled fighting in their home countries since the 1990s. Many of the 40,000 children who live in Nyarugusu have spent their whole life in the camp. Prior to the IRC programme many of these children had no opportunity to go to school, and those who did had no access to proper facilities.

Urbanisation is changing the nature of humanitarian response. In the 21st century,
the phenomenon is most prevalent in developing countries; it is estimated that cities in developing countries will account for 96 per cent of urban population growth between 2013 and 2030. Today, 80 per cent of all refugees worldwide are found in developing countries and 60 per cent of the global refugee population, or 36 million refugees, reside in urban areas.