THE LAND OF THE INVISIBLE
The number of refugees and displaced persons in the world now exceeds 59.5 million for the first time since the Second World War. The main cause is the intensification of conflicts, especially in Syria, South Sudan and the Central African Republic.
They are there but we do not see them. It is hard to believe, because there are millions of them and if they decided to set up a state, it would be the 26th most populous country on the planet. They would be citizens of the Land of the Invisible, in which everyone shares a story that always starts the same way: a desperate flight with the clothes on their backs, their only belongings. It is on this journey that they become invisible and another story begins: they reach a safe place, they stop running and the question then arises: what now?
Take the time to get to know their stories and make them visible.
Oxfam is a world-wide development organisation that mobilises the power of people against poverty.
Oxfam began life as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief and was founded in the United Kingdom in 1942. The Committee was created to send food to the women and children dying of hunger in Greece during the Second World War. Nowadays Oxfam is made up of 17 organisations across the world; they work together with disadvantaged people who are confronting injustice to demand their rights. Oxfam saves lives in humanitarian crises: Syria, South Sudan and the Central African Republic are some of the emergencies it is working in at the moment.
The European Union and its Member States are the world’s leading donor of humanitarian aid.
Relief assistance is an expression of European solidarity towards people in need all around the world. It aims to save lives, prevent and alleviate human suffering, and safeguard the integrity and human dignity of populations affected by natural disasters and man-made crises.
The European Commission ensures rapid and effective delivery of EU relief assistance through its two main instruments: humanitarian aid and civil protection.
The Commission, through its Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO), helps over 120 million victims of conflict and disasters every year.
With headquarters in Brussels and a global network of field offices, ECHO provides assistance to the most vulnerable people solely on the basis of humanitarian needs.