UN Security Council Adopts Ceasefire Resolution for Gaza, Oxfam Responds

In response to the UN Security Council’s call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, Oxfam’s UN Representative and Head of New York Office Brenda Mofya said: “We welcome the Security Council’s adoption of a ceasefire resolution so Palestinians in Gaza can have much-needed respite from the relentless and devastating Israeli violence and critical aid can…

Read More

Gaza hunger figures “worst on record” – says Oxfam

In reaction to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report published today on Gaza stating that famine is imminent in Northern Gaza and, if Israel persists in its hostilities and restricting humanitarian access, there is a real risk of famine for the rest of the enclave, Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East and North…

Read More

Gaza: Airdrops and sea routes are no alternative to aid delivery by land

25 NGOs call on governments to prioritize ceasefire and ground-based humanitarian aid as deaths from malnutrition and disease rise Human rights and humanitarian organizations present on the ground in the Gaza Strip have reiterated since the start of the current escalation that the only way to meet the unprecedented humanitarian needs in the enclave is…

Read More

Tropical storm Filipo hits Mozambique

Millions of people have nothing left to eat but wild roots as they have lost their crops to repeated extreme weather  Tropical storm Filipo has hit Mozambique today, leaving hundreds of thousands of people in urgent need of humanitarian support. The storm, which made landfall in Inhambane province in Mozambique, comes just a year after Cyclone Freddy ravaged several…

Read More

Over six million people face hunger, malnutrition and water scarcity in Zambia

Oxfam warns that over six million people from farming families in Zambia are facing acute food shortages and malnutrition until next growing season, which is twelve months away, due to a severe drought, exacerbated by climate change and El Nino, which has caused massive crop failures for half of the nation’s “planted area”. The drought…

Read More

Oxfam Canada’s Statement on Canadian Aid Airdrops in Gaza

We welcome Canada’s commitment to delivering aid to the people in Gaza facing starvation and famine. However, the Government of Israel has a legal obligation to ensure aid reaches civilians in Gaza. Indiscriminate airdrops in overpopulated areas are not only symbolic and degrading; they risk harming people, undermining the existing aid architecture, and cannot ensure…

Read More

Crisis in South Sudan: 300+ Share a single water Tap, Cholera Risk Soars

The influx of over half a million people fleeing Sudan’s conflict meant that transit centres in Renk – a border town in neighbouring South Sudan- are swelling with people four times their capacity, with more than 300 people sharing one water tap. The lack of clean water and sanitation is increasing the risk of cholera,…

Read More

‘Golden Time’ harvest ravaged in northern Gaza amid concerns of hunger and starvation

Gaza farmers’ two-month-long “golden time” of agricultural production has been destroyed by Israel’s military bombing and sealing of northern Gaza, ruining the enclave’s richest farmlands which are one of its biggest sources of fruit and vegetables.   With Israel’s actions also severely restricting humanitarian aid, the loss of local agricultural production is worsening malnutrition and hunger,…

Read More

Feminist groups condemn Premier Smith’s threat to trans youth rights and medical care

We, the undersigned, strongly condemn the Government of Alberta’s planned changes to gender-affirming care, education, and sports in the province. These changes amount to an attack on trans people, and in particular trans youth. On January 31, 2024, the Premier of Alberta announced sweeping policy changes that will disproportionately impact trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse youth. The changes…

Read More

Conflict in North Kivu leaves 100,000 without water

More than 133,000 people who fled the fighting in North Kivu, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), live in unimaginable conditions without one single toilet or water, posing serious consequences for their health and safety, warns Oxfam. Oxfam staff report that people are forced to pay US$0.40 to use the…

Read More

Open Letter: Civil society coalition urges Canada to stop arms transfers to Israel

Dear Minister Joly, We, the undersigned civil society organizations, express profound concerns about the legal and humanitarian implications of Canada’s transfer of weapon systems to the government of Israel. These concerns have been further amplified following the January 26th provisional ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Since the onset of Israel’s response to…

Read More

UNRWA funding cuts threaten Palestinian lives in Gaza and region, say NGOs

As aid organisations, we are deeply concerned and outraged that some of the largest donors have united to suspend funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), the main aid provider for millions of Palestinians in Gaza and the region. This comes amid a rapidly worsening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.  The suspension of…

Read More

Reaction to ICJ court statement on South Africa’s case against Israel

In reaction to today’s statement by the International Court of Justice order to South Africa’s court case, which requests Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent and punish the commission of all acts in relation to the articles of the Genocide Convention, Sally Abi-Khalil, Oxfam Regional Director for the Middle East said:…

Read More

Southern African countries face “terrifying and overwhelming” cholera outbreak

Southern African countries face “terrifying and overwhelming” cholera outbreak as Covid19 cases begin to rise again, Oxfam warns. Southern African countries including Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe are facing an unprecedented surge of cholera cases, warns Oxfam. The situation could become uncontrollable and difficult to managed due to steady increase of Covid19 cases and the…

Read More

Oxfam: UNSC’s failure to call for a ceasefire “utterly callous”

In reaction to the UN Security Council’s passing of a watered-down resolution instead of calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, Oxfam Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Sally Abi-Khalil, said: “The failure to call for a ceasefire after five days of deliberate delays and dilutions of the resolution is incomprehensible and utterly…

Read More

Oxfam reaction to the IPC food security figures for Gaza

In reaction to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report published today on Gaza warning of a risk of famine if intense hostilities and restricted humanitarian access persist or worsen, Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East and North Africa Regional Director, said: “Gaza’s shocking descent into starvation was so predictable as to be premeditated;…

Read More

COP28 outcome misses the mark on justice for the majority of the world

In response to the outcome of COP28, Oxfam International’s Climate Change Policy Lead Nafkote Dabi said: “Everyone fighting against the global climate crisis has little to celebrate from this disappointing COP28. Its final outcome is grossly inadequate. Oil, coal and gas won again, but they had to struggle harder to do so and their era…

Read More

Humanitarian organizations welcome Canada’s vote in favour of a ceasefire

For immediate release Montreal/Ottawa/Toronto, December 12, 2023 –  Canada’s position on a ceasefire in Gaza is finally moving forward. In addition to calling for the immediate and unconditional release of all remaining hostages, Justin Trudeau today expressed Canada’s support for a ceasefire, heeding the calls of millions of Canadians. We welcome this change in Canada’s…

Read More

East Africa floods wipe out harvests leaving four million hungry

East Africa’s floods decimate almost entire rainy season harvest leaving over four million people with no food or income As COP28 comes to a close, rich polluting nations must accelerate loss and damage compensation for countries hit hardest by climate change Six months after a historic five-season drought, massive floods have inundated vast swaths of…

Read More

International community complicit in Gaza catastrophe

Abject failure to forge ceasefire means international community complicit in unfolding catastrophe in Gaza The Israeli military onslaught in southern Gaza is causing destruction, danger, and civilian terror and suffering at such a scale that makes any humanitarian response impossible across the entire enclave, says Oxfam. The nightmare is unfolding in full view of the…

Read More

Joint Statement from Oxfam Canada and Oxfam Québec

The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau Prime Minister of Canada Hill Office House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6 December 1, 2023 Dear Prime Minister, On behalf of Oxfam Canada and Québec, and the 95,000 people who have signed our petition, we ask you to mobilize the international community to demand that the humanitarian truce initiated…

Read More

Humanitarian pause ends: Oxfam reaction to renewal of hostilities in Gaza

Reacting to news today that the humanitarian pause agreed between the Government of Israel and Hamas has ended, with renewed hostilities, Oxfam Humanitarian Director Marta Valdes Garcia said: “While Oxfam welcomes the release of Israeli and foreign national hostages back to their families during the pause, and the reuniting of Palestinian prisoners and detainees in…

Read More

Babies dying from preventable causes in besieged Gaza – Oxfam

Premature births increase by up to a third in the last month The collapse of Gaza’s hospitals and healthcare system, coupled with the catastrophic living conditions, is resulting in babies dying of preventable causes, Oxfam warned today. Newborns up to three months old are dying of diarrhoea, hypothermia, dehydration and infection as mothers have little…

Read More

Gaza humanitarian pause “a band-aid to a bleeding wound”: Oxfam

In response to the announcement of the release of hostages and prisoners, and of the four-day humanitarian pause to escalated hostilities in Gaza, agreed today between Hamas and the Government of Israel, Oxfam’s Humanitarian Director, Marta Valdez Garcia, said: “We welcome the fact that a number of the Israeli and foreign national hostages will be…

Read More

Richest 1% emit as much planet-heating pollution as two-thirds of humanity

The super rich produce as much carbon pollution as the poorest five billion people on earth. Oxfam is calling on the federal government to implement a billionaire wealth tax and a windfall profits tax.  November 19, 2023 (Ottawa) — Oxfam today released the report Climate Equality: A Planet for the 99% showing how the impacts…

Read More

Feminist Organizations Joint Appeal for Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza

  November 17, 2023 Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau Prime Minister of Canada Office of the Prime Minister 80 Wellington Street Ottawa, ON K1A 0A2 Subject: Feminist Organizations Joint Appeal for Immediate Ceasefire in Gaza Dear Prime Minister Trudeau, We, the undersigned, a coalition of feminist, gender justice, and human rights organizations, come together to add…

Read More

Fuel has run out, stalling humanitarian operations in Gaza, warn aid agencies

Aid agencies operating in Gaza issued an urgent warning that fuel reserves critical for aid operations have run out, bringing the limited assistance delivered in Gaza in recent weeks to a complete halt. On Monday 13 November 2023, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs…

Read More

Gazans face threat of cholera and other infectious diseases, says Oxfam

Food, water, power all nearing exhaustion; Oxfam partners begin small distribution but scale of need and logistical chaos pose massive challenges to humanitarian response Gaza is facing an unprecedented health crisis that risks an outbreak of deadly infectious diseases, like cholera, because water and sanitation services have completely broken down, says Oxfam. All five of…

Read More

Oxfam reaction to Israel’s order for northern Gaza to evacuate

Responding to the Israeli government’s order for northern Gaza to evacuate, Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director said:  “The world can see that this evacuation order is both utterly inhumane and impossible; the Israeli government must rescind it immediately. We implore the international community to use its utmost influence to intervene – there are hospitals…

Read More

Siege on Gaza will be a humanitarian catastrophe – Oxfam

Oxfam is warning that a total siege on Gaza will lead to a humanitarian catastrophe. Yesterday’s announcement from the Israeli government, in response to the appalling attacks by Hamas, will stop all food, water, electricity and fuel from reaching an already vulnerable population. The siege adds to the ongoing blockade of Gaza, which has endured…

Read More

Extreme hunger on the rise in Yemen, one year from end of ceasefire: Oxfam

Over a third of the Yemeni population is facing extreme hunger, with child malnutrition rates amongst the highest in the world. One year after the temporary peace agreement’s expiration, Oxfam calls on all sides of the conflict to strive for a sustainable and inclusive peace and for cuts to the international aid effort to be…

Read More

Campaign action calls on Aritzia to lift garment workers out of poverty

Today, Oxfam Canada and partners are organizing an event in Vancouver to raise awareness about the difficulties faced by Cambodian garment workers and to encourage reflection on these issues. To participate, people can visit the Aritzia store at 1100 Robson St. from 3 to 5 p.m. PDT. Sewing machines will be set up outside the…

Read More

1 in 5 water boreholes we dig now is dry, unfit for humans to drink : OXFAM

Climate-induced water insecurity poses one of the biggest threats to humanity and will lead to more hunger, disease and displacement Oxfam water engineers are having to drill deeper, more expensive and harder-to-maintain water boreholes used by some of the poorest communities around the world, more often now only to find dry, depleted or polluted reservoirs.…

Read More

Aid for Afghanistan Coalition Statement: The Passage of Bill C-41, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make consequential amendments to other Acts

The Aid for Afghanistan Coalition welcomes the adoption of Bill C-41 as a first step in enabling Canadian aid organizations to provide crucial humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan and other similar contexts. This legislation is needed to give Canadian aid organizations a path forward to ensure those who are in need of assistance receive it, regardless…

Read More

Canadian charities unite to respond to humanitarian crisis in East Africa

In response to the combined impact of conflict, climate and hunger in parts of east Africa, along with the ripple effects of the conflict in Sudan, Oxfam Canada, along with leading Canadian aid agencies are working together as the Humanitarian Coalition in raising funds to rush assistance to people in need. The Canadian government has…

Read More

Rich countries’ continued failure to honour their $100 billon climate finance promise threatens negotiations and undermines climate action

Flawed accounting systems are not giving the true picture of climate finance As global greenhouse emissions continue to rise, and climate change wreaks more havoc upon the people and places least responsible for the problem, rich polluting countries are now three years overdue on their promise to mobilize $100 billion a year in climate finance…

Read More

G7 owes huge $13 trillion debt to Global South

Wealthy Group of Seven (G7) countries owe low and middle-income countries $13.3 trillion in unpaid aid and climate action funding, reveals new analysis from Oxfam ahead of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. Despite failing to pay what they owe, G7 countries and their rich bankers demand that Global South countries pay $232 million daily…

Read More

Statement Of Solidarity With Wet’suwet’en Nation Land Defenders

Oxfam Canada stands in solidarity with the First Nations peoples of the unceded, unsurrendered Wet’suwet’en and Gitxsan territories, who are standing up for their rights and sovereignty in the face of the largest fracking project in Canadian history, the Coastal Gas Link pipeline.   On the morning of March 29, 2023, RCMP forces raided a Gidimt’en…

Read More

After eight years of war, Yemen on the brink of economic collapse – Oxfam

As Yemen enters its ninth year of war, its people are facing a devastating humanitarian crisis with more than two million children acutely malnourished. Rounds of currency depreciation, an economy on the brink of collapse, and sharp increases in the cost of fuel and other key commodities, have left millions more Yemenis in danger of…

Read More

Turkiye-Syria Earthquake: Pledges come at a make-or-break moment

In response to the EU’s donor conference for Turkiye and Syria earthquakes, Oxfam calls on the international community to leave no one behind in providing aid to the communities affected. Şengül Akçar, Oxfam KEDV Executive Director said: “The pledges come at a make-or-break moment. Torrential floods in recent days have swept away temporary accommodations and…

Read More

Federal action still falling short on gender equality: Oxfam Feminist Scorecard

(Ottawa) – Three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the deteriorating global situation – climate change, spiking food and energy price inflation and worsening conflict – has set progress towards achieving gender equality back by more than a generation globally. While the federal government’s feminist response put forward several worthy initiatives this past year, gaps still…

Read More

Global humanitarian needs highest on record – Oxfam Canada reaction

Today’s UN 2023 Global Humanitarian Overview report reveals that 339 million people are in urgent need of humanitarian aid – the highest caseload in history. One in every 23 people around the world is now in urgent need of humanitarian aid, the equivalent of nearly nine times the population of Canada. This news must be…

Read More

True value of climate finance is a third of what developed countries report: Oxfam

Reporting international climate finance remains flawed, and profoundly unfair Many rich countries are using dishonest and misleading accounting to inflate their climate finance contributions to developing countries – in 2020 by as much as 225 per cent, according to investigations by Oxfam. Oxfam estimates between just $21-24.5 billion as the “true value” of climate finance…

Read More

Flooding Crisis in Pakistan: Donations To The Humanitarian Coalition Will Be Matched By The Government Of Canada To Provide Emergency Assistance

The Humanitarian Coalition commends the commitment of the Canadian government to match the donations made to provide assitance to the 33 million people impacted by the flooding in Pakistan. The Government of Canada has announced that it will match donations to the Humanitarian Coalition and its member charities up to $3 million. “This announcement comes…

Read More

Two years after blast, Beirut still far from recovery

Two years since one of the biggest non-nuclear explosions in history ripped through Beirut, the city and the people living in it are still struggling to recover from the impact of the devastating blast, even more now with a soaring cost of food as a result of economic decline. The World Bank said that Lebanon…

Read More

Yemen: Joint INGO statement on the UN-led truce

Ahead of the end of the current UN-led truce agreement on August 2, 2022, humanitarian organizations in Yemen urge all parties to the conflict to adhere to and extend the agreement to protect civilians across the country and allow them to rebuild and recover their lives. As organizations working in Yemen, we recognize and applaud…

Read More

Unprecedented spike in food prices puts Yemenis at risk of extreme hunger

Yemen is facing unprecedented rises in the price of food putting millions more people in danger of catastrophic hunger, Oxfam warned today. Already exhausted by over seven years of conflict, Yemen has been hit hard by the worsening global food crises. The prices of wheat, flour, cooking oil, eggs and sugar have all increased by…

Read More

G7 failure to tackle hunger crisis will leave millions to starve

Responding to news of the $4.5 billion pledge made by the G7 leaders to tackle global hunger, Max Lawson, Head of Inequality Policy at Oxfam said: “Faced with the worst hunger crisis in a generation, the G7 have simply failed to take the action that is needed. Many millions will face terrible hunger and starvation as…

Read More

G7 broken promises on vaccines contribute to 600,000 preventable deaths

Rich countries have already bought majority of next generation COVID-19 vaccines Less than half (49 per cent) of the 2.1 billion COVID vaccine donations promised to poorer countries by G7 countries have been delivered, according to new figures published today by Oxfam and the People’s Vaccine Alliance. On the eve of this year’s G7 Summit,…

Read More

Oxfam Canada reaction to US Supreme Court ruling on abortion

In reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on abortion, Lauren Ravon, Executive Director, Oxfam Canada stated: “Today, the U.S. Supreme Court has delivered a devastating blow to women’s human rights, declaring through the reversal of Roe v. Wade that reproductive rights, including the right to access safe, legal abortion care, no longer exist in…

Read More

Oxfam Canada launches new program to advance women’s empowerment in Myanmar

Thanks to a contribution of $7.9 million from the Government of Canada and close to $400,000 from Oxfam Canada, more than 20,000 crisis-affected women and adolescent girls in Myanmar will be able to increase their access to resources and decision-making power through the Women Leading Durable Solutions (WLDS) project. The project will be implemented by…

Read More

Share this page: