Turkey ranked second for most humanitarian aid worldwide

Turkey has once again topped the list of most generous countries in regards to humanitarian support as per percentage to their gross national income, according to a recent report published by the U.K.-based Development Initiatives. The report, titled Global Humanitarian Assistance report 2017, said Turkey spent close to $6 billion on humanitarian aid in 2016, coming only second after the U.S., which spent $6.3 billion. Turkey, however, was listed as the most generous country for spending 0.75 percent of its gross national income (GNI) on humanitarian causes. “When Turkey’s reported contributions are considered against its GNI, it spent 0.75 percent of GNI as humanitarian assistance in 2016 (up from 0.35 per cent in 2015); while the US, ranked highest according to volumes of funding, provided international humanitarian assistance equivalent to just 0.03 per cent of its GNI.” Turkey increased its humanitarian aid budget from $3.2 billion in 2014 to reach $6 billion the following year. From 2013 to 2016, Turkey maintained third or second place in the list of the world’s most generous countries. The United Arab Emirates spent 0.18 percent of its GNI, and Luxembourg spent 0.15 per cent of its GNI, the report added. The U.K., EU institutions, and Germany all followed Turkey in the list of major donor countries. The concert was performed by Syrian children who sang songs in Turkish, Arabic and English. Turkey has the largest refugee population in the world and is currently home to more than 3 million Syrians, according to official data. It has spent around $25 billion to provide for those who have fled within its borders, while the international community contributed $526 million to that amount. That figure accounts for approximately 45 percent of all Syrian refugees in the region, the U.N. says. An additional 300,000 refugees in the region are mostly from Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and Somalia.

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Turkey ranked second for most humanitarian aid worldwide