TakingITGlobal: Inspirera, Informera, Involvera

ReliefWeb is the premier global online source of information on natural disasters and complex emergencies. The site updated around the clock to provide time-critical access to over 50,000 documents and other reliable information on events as they unfold. Our aim is to strengthen the humanitarian...
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ReliefWeb is the premier global online source of information on natural disasters and complex emergencies. The site updated around the clock to provide time-critical access to over 50,000 documents and other reliable information on events as they unfold. Our aim is to strengthen the humanitarian community’s capacity to respond to these emergencies.

ReliefWeb is a project of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN’s emergency response coordinator. By providing the big picture and a framework within which to work, OCHA coordinates their efforts and helps make sure relief reaches its destination as quickly and efficiently as possible. Much of its work is made possible by information resources, of which the ReliefWeb project is a cornerstone.
ReliefWeb centralizes and disseminates information on humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters. It is an indispensable tool for users in more than 170 countries: each month, they submit up to half a million page requests for emergency reports, background information, maps, appeals, and contribution tracking. So far, ReliefWeb has served more than eleven million requests for information on 19 complex emergencies and more than 1100 natural disasters.

Our coverage extends to all ongoing emergencies, whether they lead today’s news or have faded from the media’s attention. Just because news coverage has shifted does not mean the emergency is over.

Our site is demand-driven. When something happens of international significance, we are online almost instantaneously with the latest information -- whether from the UN or its agencies, the Red Cross or other involved non-governmental organizations, scientific institutions or the media. When Turkey suffered a huge earthquake in August 1999, we received 50,000 hits a day from individuals and groups seeking the latest unbiased information. ReliefWeb’s presence on both sides of the Atlantic allows our team to provide maximum daily coverage on humanitarian emergencies from 0800 to 2400 GMT. An Asian office will open in 2000 to allow ReliefWeb to provide time-critical updates 24 hours a day.

Impartiality and transparency are cornerstones of our policy and we maintain them by meticulously sourcing and dating all documents we put up, allowing ReliefWeb to provide balanced coverage. We post the information as is. No editing, no rewriting, no tampering. What you see is what the information providers give us.
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ReliefWeb centralizes and disseminates information on humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters. It is an indispensable tool for users in more than 170 countries: each month, they submit up to half a million page requests for emergency reports, background information, maps, appeals, and...
[ view more ]

ReliefWeb centralizes and disseminates information on humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters. It is an indispensable tool for users in more than 170 countries: each month, they submit up to half a million page requests for emergency reports, background information, maps, appeals, and contribution tracking. So far, ReliefWeb has served more than eleven million requests for information on 19 complex emergencies and more than 1100 natural disasters.
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