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We are feeling encouraged and motivated by the passion and enthusiasm of the humanitarian aid and international development sector, as demonstrated at AidEx and Development2030 last week, and in all the work the sector is doing.
We heard from Predrag Avramović, Head of Section for Humanitarian & Migration Affairs, Minister Counsellor, EU Delegation to the UN & other International Organisations in Geneva; Ib Petersen, Ambassador & Permanent Representative at Permanent Mission of Denmark to UN in Geneva; Thomas Wagner, Ambassador, Deputy Permanent Representative at EU Delegation in Geneva; Stephanie Dei, Head of Private Sector Partnerships Division at IOM; Ramesh Rajasingham, Director, Coordination Division at UN OCHA; and Erik Abild, Director of humanitarian assistance & comprehensive response at NORAD - who all provided the latest insights from the aid and development sector in their keynote speeches.
Dominic Grace, Deputy Director, Finance & Admin Department from UNHCR explained why an event like AidEx is important: “We’re all addressing the same problems from different perspectives. For example, it was very useful to meet with the commercial sector and hear some of their innovative ideas around greening vehicles. There were a lot of great contacts at AidEx.”
Some highlights from the exhibition included Evenproducts’ display which was a sizeable Steel Water Storage Tank for the humanitarian community, Alpinter’s stand included the LEIF Tent launch, the ICRC Dome displayed a 360-degree movie and the ever-expanding Danish Pavilion and Duty of Care Pavilions demonstrated a range of all the latest innovative products and services for the sector.
Jeremie Oberson, Transformation Program Manager, ICRC, said: “AidEx allows us to talk to people, some of whom we’ve only spoken to online, so, to meet them and touch their products and have an open discussion here is more sociable, and at the same time it allows us to discover new things.”
AidEx and Development2030 Awards
We’re inspired and motivated by positive changes coming into action, as demonstrated in the Aid Innovation Challenge and by the other shortlisted initiatives in our Awards Programme.
The Aid Innovation Challenge took place on Day One of AidEx, with four teams showcasing their unique innovations. We learnt about IFRC-DREF Insurance, Action Against Hunger’s new Renewable Energies for Assisting Communities tool - REact, Even’s low-cost period underwear and Aquaporo’s Droplet and Stream project. The winner was chosen by our judges – Nicholas Rutherford, Managing Director, Aidex Geneva Limited, Julius Hill, EMEA International Affairs & Development IAD sector lead at Deloitte, Neil Rodrigues, Director of Global Supply Chain, Plan International and Therese Marie Uppstrøm Pankratov, Special advisor, The Humanitarian Innovation Programme, Innovation Norway. Aquaporo’s Droplet and Stream project was chosen as the winner.
Development2030’s ‘Sustainable initiative of the Year’ Award was won by the UNLitter Gaza Initiative from Unbox. This initiative focuses on revolutionising waste management and enhancing digital inclusivity in the Gaza Strip, a region significantly impacted by socio-economic challenges and environmental issues.
Development2030’s ‘SDG Programme of the Year’ Award was won by Love Binti International’s "Menstrual Hygiene Training Program”, a direct intervention against period poverty.
AidEx’s ‘Young Humanitarian Hero of the Year’ Award was won by Alina Kurska, Director of International Affairs at Global Empowerment Mission (GEM), a charitable organisation whose main goal is to provide vital assistance to people affected by natural disasters and armed conflicts around the world.
AidEx’s ‘Humanitarian Hero of the Year’ Award, sponsored this year by UPS Foundation, was won by Olivier Vandecasteele, Founder and Director of Protect Humanitarians. Olivier has dedicated his life to alleviating human suffering in some of the world’s most challenging environments, including Afghanistan, Mali and Iran, directly impacting countless individuals, offering essential care and support in regions ravaged by conflict, instability, and humanitarian crises.
Forthcoming Events
Next in our calendar is our new event, the Humanitarian Finance Summit, co-hosted by Humanitarian Finance Forum (HFF), which is taking place in London on Friday 14th February 2025. This event merges public and private insights to navigate the burgeoning field of humanitarian innovative finance (HIF).
AidEx Nairobi, the satellite to AidEx in Geneva and focused on aid and development within East Africa, returns for its next edition on 11-12 June 2025 at the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi and next year’s AidEx Geneva and Development2030 will return to Palexpo on 22-23 October 2025.
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