At the recent World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, more than 9,000 participants made a three-fold commitment to people in crisis all over the world. We pledged to improve our response to people caught up in natural disasters and conflicts; to empower them as the agents of their own recovery; and to summon greater political will to prevent and end the wars which are causing so much suffering.

The challenge we face is unprecedented. Around the world, 130 million people need humanitarian aid. More than 60 million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes. Despite their precarious conditions, there is a severe lack of funding to assist them – raising basic questions about global solidarity in a world of great wealth.

The massive extent of this challenge meant this had to be a different kind of summit. For the first time, people affected by crises worked alongside world leaders, heads of NGOs, civil society and the private sector to find solutions. This diversity of voices was an achievement in itself.

Image: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addresses the closing ceremony of the World Humanitarian Summit, which took place in Istanbul, Turkey, on 23-24 May. Pictured looking on: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (seated), President of Turkey; and two young participants in the ceremony. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.