Our Activity

Our humanitarian assistance based on needs which cover short-term relief, disaster prevention and reconstruction operations based on the reports and request made by our local partners. Recognizing the complexity of humanitarian crises, it calls us to revise the traditional lines between development cooperation and humanitarian aid. In line with the Conclusion of the Council of the European Union on Operationalizing the Humanitarian-Development Nexus, the Agency’s projects aim at having a great impact on ensuring long-term social stability, sustainability, cohesion and diversity, bearing in mind the links between sustainable development, humanitarian action and peacebuilding as well as conflict prevention. Strengthening the resilience of the most vulnerable populations contributes to addressing the root causes of vulnerability, fragility and conflict, and enables them to resist future crises, as well as helps them to return to their place of origin.

Considering the key role of peacebuilding and resilience building in terms of sustainable development, the Agency also focuses on religious persecuted minorities targeting the most vulnerable communities, as we are convinced that the freedom of religion or belief is a fundamental human right that is an essential part of stability, peace and security and is crucial for successful and sustainable development. The growing trend of religious persecution requires increased effort to address the needs of vulnerable religious minorities by involving representatives of religious communities and implement humanitarian aid based on local needs.

Our local partners are often Faith-Based Organizations that are credible actors, especially in countries where there is a lack of good governance. Our experience is that these Faith-Based Organizations serve the common good in all areas of life for the benefit of the local society where they live. Their representatives are in close connection with the local communities, thus they have a key role in terms of implementing humanitarian projects coordinated by our Agency.

The Agency has had missions in the Middle East (Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine), in Asia (Bangladesh), in Africa (Nigeria, Mali, Ghana, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, South-Africa, Tanzania) and also provides rapid humanitarian help in case of natural or man-made catastrophes in countries like Mozambique, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Pakistan, Albania, Ukraine, or Lebanon.

Since its founding in early 2017 the Hungary Helps Program has helped 70 thousand persecuted people to stay in their homelands or return to, after the cease of hostilities. From April 2019, the Agency coordinatesthe projects of the Hungary Helps Program.

The Agency operates in the following sectors:

Emergency Response: Short term activities aimed at alleviating suffering immediately

• Material relief assistance and services: non-food e.g. shelter, water, sanitation.
• Emergency food aid.
• Relief coordination, protection and support services, coordination of the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Reconstruction relief and rehabilitation:Longer-term activities to improve infrastructure and social services

• Restoring pre-existing infrastructure: water and sanitation facilities, health-care services, houses.
• Shelter and temporary communal settlements or collective centers for the displaced population.
• Social and economic rehabilitation: e.g. trauma counselling and treatment, employment programs, workshops.

Experts and other technical assistance: consultants, teachers, doctors, police, civils and volunteers

• Volunteer programs.
• Fixed assets: supply equipment, machines and systems.

Education:

• Education policy and administrative management, materials, training-workshops for local teachers and educational staff.

Health:

• Infectious disease control.
• Financing medical appointments and vaccination programs.
• Improve hygiene and or raise awareness.
• Mental and psycho-social support following gender-based violence.

Disaster prevention and preparedness:

• In case of natural disasters: building responsiveness, emergency contingency stocks, early warning system.
• In case of man-made crisis: anticipate forced displacement.

As a ground-breaking government initiative, in 2016 Hungary established the Deputy State Secretariat for the Aid of Persecuted Christians which in 2018 became the State Secretariat for the Aid of Persecuted Christians and the Hungary Helps Program intending to expand the State Secretary’s activities to a wide range of humanitarian aids and development programs.

The State Secretary for the Aid of Persecuted Christians and the Hungary Helps Program is Tristan Azbej PhD.

The Hungary Helps Agency was founded in April 2019 and is managed by Péter Kovács-Pifka, CEO.