Transforming Humanitarian Aid: A Refined Approach

Moderator: David Foster – Senior News Anchorman, TRT World
Fuat Oktay: Prime Ministry Undersecretary of the Republic of Turkey
Mukesh Kapila: Professor of Global Health and Humanitarian Affairs at the University of Manchester
Richard Falk: Professor Emeritus of International Law at Princeton University
C. Kani Torun: Founder of Doctors Worldwide and Former Turkish Ambassador to Somalia

Summary:
Moderator David Foster posed the following to the panelists:
“The purpose of the forum is about people talking. If people don’t talk, people can’t listen. And if people can’t listen, nothing changes… Is aid necessary? Why is it necessary? Where does it go and who decides where it goes?”
The panelists engaged in a lively debate about the most effective ways to distribute humanitarian aid. Each were questioned on whether or not the distribution of aid is fair and equitable, and whether we need proper, political will to move it forward.
The question of political will raised interesting arguments, often veering into the philosophical. Mukesh Kapila was adamant that political will needs to be informed by the humanistic tenet of altruism, and the conversation was steered towards the nature of providing sustainable development with a holistic outlook of the world. Much of the current discourse relating to humanitarian aid is influenced by the vested interests of significant players in the global agenda.
The panelists discussed whether humanitarian aid is simply a Band-Aid solution, or if sustainable development programs are required to effect viable change. Moreover, they looked at whether veto power should be restricted at the UNSC when dealing with humanitarian aid; often in lieu of mixed political motivations, and whether we need to return to the basics of true humanitarianism and altruism.