Extreme levels of violence in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are shattering lives and exacerbating humanitarian needs. Nearly one in three women in North and Central America are in urgent need of assistance. The international community continues to overlook this crisis and is unable to provide adequate funding. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has warned that this is becoming another large, protracted and neglected humanitarian disaster..
“The kinds of stories that people here in Honduras have told me are similar to those from people in conflict zones like Syria, Yemen and Ukraine,” NRC executive director Jan Egeland said last week. “Violence has permeated the very fabric of life, displacing tens of thousands of people from their homes. Five of the 5,000 students in the current NRC-supported school in La Lima were plagued by violence, hurricane devastation and poverty. Thousands dropped out or fled to the United States, and now there are 1,200 left.”
In North and Central America, heavily armed gangs, drug traffickers and transnational criminal syndicates fuel corruption and gender-based violence throughout society. Desperate immigrants from this region, and also from Africa and Asia, roam these perilous regions seeking protection and opportunity in North America. Every day, 1,000 migrants from dozens of countries come to Honduras in search of protection and a better life in North America.
In addition, the region is increasingly facing the impacts of climate change and extreme weather events, destabilizing livelihoods and reduced access to resources. In Honduras alone, he has 3.2 million people in need, many of whom need both protection and food assistance.
North and Central America has one of the highest murder rates in the world. This crisis is manifested in the forced eviction of entire communities, the recruitment of children and youth by gangs, lack of access to health care, and large numbers of children dropping out of school. Rates of sexual violence and murder of women far exceed global rates.
Despite acute and growing humanitarian needs, levels of funding for the response were markedly inadequate last year, with El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras receiving between one-fourth and one-half of the amount needed. It was the lowest level in the world. 70% of all funding to the region in 2022 will come from the United States, highlighting the failure of other donor countries in the great economies of Europe, the Gulf and Asia to play their part. This trend he looks to continue in 2023.
“Families that the NRC helps relocate, assist and protect in Honduras told me how armed gangs used violence to seize land and property and threatened to recruit children. This forced them out of their homes, ending their livelihoods and their children’s education,” said Aegeanland. “Women have survived horrific domestic violence, including rape and other sexual violence. Last year, a woman was killed every 28 hours of her life in Honduras. Nothing will change unless we raise
Organizations like the NRC, local and national authorities have made some progress in helping displaced families. In her March of this year, Honduras introduced legislation to help internally displaced people and prevent forced recruitment by violence and organized crime. This law must be effectively implemented and receive financial and diplomatic support from the outside world.
“We need greater awareness of the climate crisis, the situation young people are facing, and the level of violence endured by people in Honduras and Central America. We have not been able to meet that human cost, and only through concerted efforts from more donors will we see the progress that is so clearly needed.
**Facts and Figures:**
- Across the subregion, 9.3 million people are in need of assistance, including 3.2 million in Honduras, 5 million in Guatemala and 1.1 million in El Salvador.
- In 2022, El Salvador had the lowest funding for humanitarian programs in the world, with just over a quarter of them funded. Honduras (43.6%) and Guatemala (36.9%) also saw pathetic levels of funding.
- NRC has been working in North and Central America since 2014, helping tens of thousands of people affected by violence and natural disasters, including internally displaced persons, people in need of international protection, deportees and local host communities. I have helped people.
**NOTE TO EDITORS:**
- The B-roll of Egeland’s visit to Honduras is available here for free.
- Photos from Aegean visit to Honduras are available here for free.
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
- NRC Global Media Hotline: media@nrc.no, +47 905 62 329
- Ed Prior, Media Advisor to the Secretary General, currently in the United States with Egeland, Ed.Prior@nrc.no, +47 902 94 379
- Laura Díez Ron, NRC North Central America Advocacy Coordinator, currently residing in Honduras, Laura.Ron@nrc.no +503 7853 0737
