Syria: humanitarian aid in the face of a bloodless country and an uncertain future

Photo of PUI during a visit to Syria in January 2025

December 2024. The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, after fourteen years of war, marks a major turning point for Syria. Power collapsed in a matter of days under the assault of rebel forces led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Cham (HTC) group, leaving the way open for an uncertain political transition. The establishment of an interim government, led by Ahmad al-Sharaa (Abu Mohammed al-Joulani), and the adoption of a provisional constitution in March 2025 are seen as steps forward, but they are not enough to meet the country’s immediate challenges: political instability, community and sectarian tensions, a lasting humanitarian crisis and large-scale reconstruction.

Syrians celebrated the end of the regime, but woke up a month later to an unchanged reality: a country in ruins, with no resources, and an uncertain future,’ observes Charlotte Baudoin, of the NGO Première Urgence Internationale.

On 30 March, Ahmad al-Sharaa, the interim president, announced a new Syrian transitional government composed mainly of his loyalists but including 4 ministers from minorities, a Christian, a Druze, an Alawite and a Kurd among its 23 members. The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (editor’s note: autonomous Syrian Kurdish authority) declared that this government did not reflect the diversity and plurality of the country and that it was therefore not concerned by the government’s decisions! It should also be remembered that Ahmad al-Sharaa has full legislative, executive and judicial powers, and that he chairs the ‘National Security Council’, considered by some to be the country’s real government. The future will tell whether the promise of a representative, unitary government that respects minorities has been kept or not. That is the challenge after 14 years of war.

In this context, humanitarian action is more necessary than ever, but its new framework for intervention is still unclear. Some had hoped that the end of the regime would facilitate access to relief supplies. However, as Thomas Janny of the NGO Solidarités International points out, guaranteed access has not yet been achieved and humanitarian space remains restricted.

To analyse the humanitarian challenges ahead, this article draws on two complementary accounts. Thomas Janny, Regional Director for the Middle East at Solidarités International, and Olivier Routeau, Director of Operations and Charlotte Baudoin, Country Director for Syria at the NGO Première Urgence Internationale (PUI). Before the fall of the regime, Solidarités International was working in rebel-controlled areas (in the north-east and north-west of the country), while Première Urgence Internationale was working in regime-controlled areas, in 10 of the country’s 14 governorates.

Between the reorganisation of the humanitarian sector, reduced funding and strong political and geopolitical tensions, post-Assad Syria raises many questions about the future of aid and the conditions under which it is delivered.

A Blitzkrieg with uncertain consequences

The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime was as sudden as it was unexpected, a veritable Blitzkrieg, as Thomas Janny puts it. In the space of ten days, HTS forces, supported by numerous other militias, took control of the capital, causing the total collapse of a regime that had held out for fourteen years with the support of Iran and Shiite militias, as well as Russia. This rapid changeover left the country without a functional state structure, with an improvised transitional government and an administration in ruins.

Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa is seeking to stabilise the situation, notably by adopting an interim constitution in March 2025. This constitution guarantees certain fundamental freedoms, notably in terms of expression and women’s rights, but it maintains a powerful executive with few checks and balances. Although there have been declarations aimed at establishing a democratic framework, the foundations remain extremely fragile,’ explains Olivier Routeau of Première Urgence Internationale. The absence of solid structures and the lack of resources are complicating the establishment of a stable state, while the population sees few concrete improvements in their daily lives.

Nor has the collapse of the regime put an end to the violence. In the first few weeks, clashes broke out on the Syrian coast, particularly in Tartous and Latakia, historic bastions of the Alawite community. This violence, which caused more than 1,300 deaths (many of them civilians), rekindled the community and religious tensions that had characterised the Syrian conflict. There is a real danger of widespread reprisals against the Alawites, who are seen as Assad’s historical supporters,’ warns Charlotte Baudoin, from PUI. Many are fleeing to Lebanon, while the new authorities are struggling to impose their control over the security forces, who are implicated in these abuses.

At the same time, Syria remains a battleground for geopolitical rivalries. Turkey, sponsor of the new government, is concerned about the maintenance of Kurdish power in the north-east, and has stepped up its air strikes, targeting areas under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces (FDS). Israel, for its part, has stepped up its strikes on Syrian military sites. The fall of Assad has not put an end to foreign interests in Syria; on the contrary, it has redistributed the cards,’ analyses Thomas Janny. We might even say that Turkey has replaced Iran in Syria.

In this chaotic context, the reconstruction of the country seems out of reach in the short term. At the Brussels summit on 19 March, international donors pledged $6.5 billion, a limited amount compared with the $400 billion needed for reconstruction. In addition, US sanctions remain in place, hampering the necessary investment and slowing down any attempt at economic recovery. The European Union has lifted some restrictions, notably on the energy sector, but their impact remains limited. Without the lifting of US sanctions, Syrian recovery is impossible’, notes Olivier Routeau.

For the NGOs working on the ground, this transition period represents a major challenge. The end of the regime has turned the organisation of humanitarian aid upside down, raising new questions about access to populations and cooperation with the new authorities. While Syria has immense needs in terms of aid and reconstruction, humanitarian aid workers have to deal with an unstable environment and a future that is still uncertain.

Opening pipes to the water network in a camp in northern Syria © Solidarités International

Minorities in Syria: between fragile integration and persistent tensions

The rapid fall of the Assad regime has reshuffled the cards of power in Syria, but it has not put an end to community divisions. While the transitional government claims to want to build an inclusive nation, religious and ethnic tensions are a reality that the new government must resolve. Minorities, historically caught up in the conflict, now find themselves in an uncertain position, between fears of reprisals and promises of integration.

The Alawites, long seen as the mainstay of the Assad regime, are now the most vulnerable. In Tartous and Latakia, atrocities targeted the community from the very first days of the transition, killing more than 1,300 people. The government has condemned the violence, but probably does not have the means to prosecute these crimes,’ observes Charlotte Baudoin of Première Urgence Internationale. Weakened by years of war and impunity, the Syrian judicial system seems incapable of fulfilling its role for the time being.

The Kurds, for their part, gained political recognition with the agreement of 10 March, which provides for the integration of the FDS into the national army. This agreement, which enshrines the place of the Kurds in the new Syria, is nevertheless fragile. Tensions persist between Kurdish units, former jihadists and pro-Turkish mercenaries. It will be difficult to unify these forces under a single structure,’ stresses Charlotte Baudoin. Moreover, this agreement has not prevented Turkey from continuing its strikes in north-eastern Syria, a sign that Damascus’ recognition of the Kurds does not mean an end to the bombing and fighting, which could resume at any time.

For the Druze, the transition raises as many hopes as concerns. Their religious leader, Hikmat al-Hajri, has publicly criticised the new government’s constitutional declaration as being too centralised and unrepresentative of Syria’s diversity. The question of autonomy, granted to them under Assad as part of the ‘Alliance of Minorities’, remains unresolved. In a country where community balances are still unstable, the challenge will be to guarantee a system where each group finds its place without stirring up resentment.

This situation makes access for humanitarian aid particularly delicate. For Solidarités International, which has been operating in areas that were not held by the Assad regime, since the beginning of its work, the displacement of populations and the new humanitarian needs represent a major challenge. During the HTS offensive towards Damascus, our teams on the ground witnessed massive displacements of Kurdish populations towards the north-east, where they had to put in place an emergency response in just a few days’, explains Thomas Janny. PUI, which was initially present in the government zone, is also emphasising the need for reconstruction to include all minorities in order to avoid further fractures.

United Nations (UN). (2025). Humanitarian Response Priorities: January – March 2025 – Syrian Arab Republic. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) [2]

Uncertain humanitarian access

Humanitarian needs in Syria

16.5 million people require humanitarian aid.
14.56 million people are food insecure, of whom 9.1 million are classified as acutely food insecure (including 1.3 million in a severe situation).
8 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) since 2011.
823,302 people newly displaced in 2024, of whom 522,600 returned in December alone.
Nearly 6.5 million people have fled Syria since the start of the civil war, including: more than 3 million to Turkey, around 784,000 to Lebanon, more than 705,000 to Germany, and almost 650,000 to Jordan.

Figures from the OCHA 2025 report on humanitarian needs in Syria[1].

Humanitarian aid budget in 2024

In 2024, the United Nations has estimated the aid budget required at 4.07 billion dollars.
At the end of the year, only 1.46 billion dollars (or 35.9%) had been raised.

Humanitarian Action 2024 figures[2]

The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime has opened up new prospects for humanitarian action in Syria. NGOs have been able to access previously unreachable areas from their respective zones of operation before the overthrow of the regime.

However, this opening has been accompanied by new administrative and logistical constraints. As the legal framework is not yet well defined, the potential implementation of new programmes remains compromised for the time being. According to Thomas Janny, the authorities are still hesitant about the relationship they wish to maintain with international NGOs (INGOs) and the freedom they will be granted. In addition, the security situation remains unstable: bombardments persist in certain regions of the north-east, and further atrocities cannot be ruled out. The humanitarian situation has continued to deteriorate,’ notes Charlotte Baudoin, ’Israeli air strikes have intensified, while ongoing hostilities in the north and south, as well as recent instability and the deteriorating situation in coastal areas, have worsened humanitarian conditions and increased protection concerns.

Another major challenge is the gradual return of refugees, estimated at 125,000 since the fall of the regime. According to the United Nations, nearly 6.5 million people have fled Syria since the start of the civil war, with a further 8 million internally displaced. These returns raise questions about access to basic services for people who return to their villages in ruins after years of exile, and about the capacity of NGOs to respond to new needs. In a context where funding is uncertain and infrastructures are still fragile, humanitarian organisations must find sustainable solutions to support this transition.

The humanitarian sector absolutely must succeed in this first phase of emergency response, to enable Syria to move on to the next stage, that of reconstruction’, explains Olivier Routeau.

International support and financial uncertainties: a delicate balance

The role of the international community is now crucial to Syria’s recovery. Since the fall of the regime, several governments and multilateral organisations have announced plans to support reconstruction, emphasising the need for inclusive development and political stabilisation. The European Union, for example, has reaffirmed its commitment to a peaceful and sustainable transition, while institutions such as the World Bank are beginning to consider recovery projects.

This international support is essential to rehabilitate destroyed infrastructure, support basic services and encourage the return of displaced persons and refugees. Olivier Routeau stresses that without a strong commitment from international donors, local capacities will remain too limited to meet the immense humanitarian and reconstruction needs. This support should enable us to move away from an emergency approach and lay the foundations for more sustainable aid.

However, this dynamic has been disrupted by a reorganisation of humanitarian funding. The sudden freezing of American funds, which via the USAID agency amounted to a total annual budget of 42.8 billion dollars (42% of global humanitarian aid), has created major uncertainty for NGOs on the ground. American aid to Syria represented around a quarter of donations to the humanitarian response plan in 2024, i.e. 377.7 million dollars [3]. The suspension of funding has forced many organisations to drastically reduce their operations or even withdraw from certain areas.

Faced with these restrictions, humanitarian actors are having to reassess their funding strategies, and are looking to diversify their sources. However, this decision by the new Trump administration is part of a more general trend of reduced funding for international aid. Cuts in the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budgets of several European countries, including France, are giving rise to great concern and imposing a very short-term approach.

In this uncertain context, coordination between humanitarian and development aid is essential. We must avoid a humanitarian vacuum that would leave millions of Syrians without support at a critical time’, insists Olivier Routeau. Finally, the lifting of the remaining sanctions appears to be a necessary condition to facilitate economic recovery and enable humanitarian actors to work more effectively on the ground.

An unpredictable future, an essential commitment

As Syria enters a new phase in its history, the humanitarian challenges are immense. While the fall of the regime has opened up certain prospects, it has also left a devastated country, where humanitarian emergencies go hand in hand with the need for reconstruction.

International support will be crucial if another disaster is to be avoided. But with funding falling and instability on the ground, NGOs are struggling to adapt. The lifting of the remaining sanctions, better humanitarian coordination and appropriate funding will be essential to support Syria in the long term, if it is to stabilise and not fall back into conflict.

[1] Syrian Arab Republic Humanitarian Response Plan 2024 | Financial Tracking Service

[2] United Nations (UN). (2025). Humanitarian Response Priorities: January – March 2025 – Syrian Arab Republic. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

[3] Humanitarian action, Syrian Arab Republic, 2024. Financials | Humanitarian Action

India Hauteville

India Hauteville holds a first Masters degree in International Politics from Sciences Po Bordeaux and is currently studying for a Masters degree in Integration and Change in the Mediterranean and Middle East at Sciences Po Grenoble. She is currently assistant to the founder of Solidarités International, Mr. Alain Boinet.

Particularly interested in the Syrian conflict, she is currently writing a thesis on the articulation between humanitarian principles and the realities on the ground in Syria, using the NGO Solidarités International as a case study.

I invite you to read these interviews and articles published in the edition :

20 years of commitment to solidarity and human development

Interview with David Poinard, Managing Director of the Veolia Foundation

In Chad, the Veolia Foundation is working with UNICEF to identify solutions for access to water that are both adapted to this humanitarian environment and likely to be adopted by local communities. ©Veolia

On Monday 18 November, the Veolia foundation celebrated its 20th anniversary… 20 years, the age of youth… But for this atypical foundation, the only one of its kind in France, these twenty years have been those of a human adventure, of self-building to better unite project support and skills sponsorship, while optimising the Veolia group’s three core businesses (water, energy and waste management) in the service of others and the planet. During the evening, Antoine Frérot, Chairman of the Veolia Group and the Veolia Foundation, and other speakers addressed nearly two hundred guests, including Veoliaforce volunteers, humanitarian and institutional partners, and project leaders. For Défis Humanitaires, this anniversary is an opportunity to take stock and to recall the fundamentals of this foundation, which is now a key player in humanitarian aid, development, support for initiatives and the defence of the environment and biodiversity. Interview with David Poinard, CEO of the Veolia Foundation.

This interview is one of a series published with CartONG, Résonances Humanitaires (RH), INSO, Coordination Humanitaire et Développement (CHD), Première Urgence Internationale, Solidarités Internationale and the Crisis and Support Centre of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs. There are more to come, notably with VOICE, the coordination of humanitarian NGOs with the European Commission and ECHO in Brussels.

Hello David Poinard. Before going any further, could you tell us about the foundations of the Veolia Foundation in terms of its statutes and how it operates within the Veolia group?

The Veolia Foundation is a corporate foundation under the law of 23 July 1987. Beyond this legal aspect, we are a team of about ten people, supported by the Veolia group. We are the Veolia Group Employees’ Foundation. As the cornerstone of our action, they can be involved as project sponsors or Veoliaforce volunteers. In this way, they embody the Veolia Foundation’s two levers for action: financial support and skills sponsorship.

More specifically, how is the Foundation governed?

The Board of Directors of the Veolia Foundation is made up of Veolia representatives and outside figures who bring us their perspective. It defines the Foundation’s strategic orientations and oversees its sound management. It approves commitments in excess of €150,000, while the Selection Committee examines other projects submitted to the Foundation.

The Veolia Foundation was set up in 2004, partly on the initiative and commitment of Veolia employees. At the time, Veolia Waterforce, a humanitarian intervention structure in the field, was added to this ‘redistributing’ foundation. Under the impetus of Thierry Vandevelde, Managing Director of the Foundation at the time, it became Veoliaforce. Can you elaborate on this evolution-construction towards a unique foundation model, combining a redistribution component as a ‘project sponsor’ and a component as a field player?

Originally, there was a fairly traditional corporate foundation: employees could ask it to support charities, often local ones, in which they were involved in their spare time. When the Waterforce unit, renamed Veoliaforce, joined the Foundation, we gained a lever for action and changed our nature by adding an operational aspect to our actions. We have one specific feature: our actions are always carried out with partners. We work regularly with the French Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières and Solidarités International. And the United Nations

The Veolia Foundation has also joined the France humanitarian response team. When, just over a year ago, the Kakhovka dam was destroyed in Ukraine, leading to flooding and the displacement of populations, the Veolia Foundation took part in an operation led by the Crisis and Support Centre (CDCS) of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.

From your point of view, what have been the main challenges and issues that the Veolia Foundation has had to take up or assume over the past twenty years, in order to respond synergistically to the various missions it has set itself: humanitarian emergencies and development, social reintegration, protection of the environment and biodiversity, research and training?

In twenty years, the Veolia Foundation has built bridges between worlds that did not speak to each other and opened doors between the private and public sectors. Today, one of its greatest successes is that these doors no longer exist. With every humanitarian disaster, exchanges are natural and fluid.

The Foundation has changed in nature, but it has also changed in dimension by being able to support projects over the long term. And I’m thinking of the Tara Ocean Foundation. The schooner Tara and the Veolia Foundation are a bet on trust, on our ability to understand the role of the ocean in regulating the climate, on a collective ambition. We have travelled thousands of miles across the seas following Tara. I believe we have helped to raise awareness of a Tara generation. The generation that turned 20 with the Tara Ocean Foundation last year, and with the Veolia Foundation this year.

How many projects has the Veolia Foundation supported since it was set up in 2004, and how many skills sponsorship projects have it carried out?

The Veolia Foundation has supported more than 1,500 projects and carried out more than 200 skills sponsorship projects.

The number of your partners, particularly humanitarian ones, is impressive: Médecins Sans Frontières, the Red Cross, Solidarités International, Première Urgence, Action contre la faim, etc. On a more institutional level, the Crisis and Support Centre of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs…. There are also partnerships with the Norwegian Refugee Council, the Bioforce Institute and even UNICEF and UNHCR… How are these partnerships built, based on what criteria and on what occasions or initiatives? What common thread binds them together?

The common thread is the need for effectiveness. We want to be useful for the beneficiary populations. We need to be both reactive in the event of a humanitarian emergency and determined when addressing long-term issues, such as sanitation in refugee camps. To achieve this fluidity in our exchanges, we need to get to know each other and exchange ideas. With this in mind, in 2020 we set up the WASH (Water, Sanitation, Hygiene or EAH editor’s note) Humanitarian Workshops, a biennial event organised with the Partenariat Français pour l’Eau (PFE), which brings together a number of players in the sector to identify innovations, share feedback and, generally speaking, talk to each other. I believe we now have a well-established place in the sector as water and sanitation experts dedicated to the humanitarian sector. We keep coming back to this: our Veoliaforce volunteers are our added value.

Organised with the Partenariat Français pour l’Eau (PFE), the Humanitarian WASH Workshops bring together around fifty experts in access to water and sanitation in the humanitarian sector to identify innovations and share feedback and good practice. ©Veolia

Veoliaforce, a field intervention structure that supports humanitarian NGOs with expertise specific to the Veolia group (water, energy and waste management), works with volunteers who are Veolia group employees made available during their working hours. How are applications and in-house technical training organised?

Each year we organise training for around thirty candidates for the Veoliaforce voluntary service. These employees, from all Veolia’s business lines, learn how to deploy Aquaforces, our mobile water purification units, and get to know our partners in the humanitarian sector, who are present during the training.

As you mentioned, Veoliaforce volunteers are employees of the group who go on mission during their working hours, with a hierarchy and colleagues who support the effort in their absence. When a Veoliaforce expert leaves, a whole team, in addition to the Foundation, is mobilised to make this possible.

The Veolia Foundation is present or active in a great many countries, and the ‘map of projects’ is impressive. Can you give some concrete, recent and significant examples of interventions, particularly humanitarian, with your partners, on decisive issues, situations or challenges?

In recent months, we have been working in refugee and displaced persons camps in eastern Chad. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is facing one of the most massive humanitarian crises in the world today. It asked the Veolia Foundation to improve access to water in the 12 camps around Farchana. We provided continuous support for five weeks to audit and make recommendations.

In another example, this time with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), several Veoliaforce experts travelled to Goma, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, to support the NGO in improving access to drinking water in hospitals and camps for displaced persons.

And on a much more local level, in the Paris region, we are supporting a back-to-work project organised by Maison Solidarité Femmes 95 to help women who have suffered violence. Our projects and missions take us to places where humanity is under attack.

The civil war in neighbouring Sudan has caused almost 8 million people to flee, of whom just over 900,000 have crossed the border into Chad. As a Stand-By Partner of the UN agency, the Veolia Foundation is committed to supporting the UNHCR on the issue of access to water. ©Veolia

To keep things practical and humanitarian, a simple question: when does Veoliaforce intervene?

It all starts with an exchange with a partner who, through their knowledge of the field, lets us know what type of intervention is needed. In a post-disaster context, it is the feedback that leads us to determine the human and material resources needed to restore access to water, for example. Does the area have fresh water sources? Is it necessary to treat brackish water? The answer will lead us to give priority to a particular Aquaforce [mobile drinking water treatment unit].

In a post-emergency humanitarian context, or even in a development project, you have to find the right moment to intervene in the most useful way possible. Depending on needs and the availability of our Veoliaforce experts, we structure the timetable for missions with our partners.

Access to drinking water is already, and will become even more so, one of the decisive challenges of the 21st century… Does the fact that you are the foundation of a group that specialises, among other things, in water services give you a more global – we would say holistic – ‘intelligence’ of this challenge? And how does this intelligence enable you to put in place ‘tailor-made’ solutions on the ground (I’m also thinking of your adaptable and modular Aquaforces and Saniforces technical solutions)?

The challenge is to combine the business expertise available within the Group with our partners’ knowledge of the field. The Aquaforce RO, adapted to brackish water environments, was born out of the need, gradually identified, to be able to adapt to environments where fresh water is scarce. Saniforce, a low-carbon solution for treating faecal sludge in humanitarian contexts, was born out of field observations: when camps for displaced persons or refugees become permanent, the question of sanitation becomes a major public health and environmental issue.

In addition to humanitarian and development work, the Veolia Foundation is also involved in social reintegration and the protection of the environment and biodiversity (the Tara missions you mentioned spring to mind). Can you explain how important these causes are to you, and how you link them to the Foundation’s other missions and to the Veolia Group’s core businesses?

Like Veolia, we want to be a player in the inevitable ecological transformation we have to go through. To be understood, embodied and activated, this transformation must be fair. This is a major challenge for our contemporary societies. By investing in social links and integration through economic activity, we want to ensure that no one is forgotten along the way.

As for the environment, the challenge is to live in harmony with nature, preserve resources and biodiversity, and limit climate change. In other words, our challenge is to ensure that the Earth remains habitable. The Foundation encourages actions that educate the public or raise awareness of eco-responsible behaviour. It also supports ambitious projects to understand and restore natural environments.

Do you have any practical examples of training initiatives in one or more of the Foundation’s areas of activity that are particularly close to your heart?

Training is not one of the Veolia Foundation’s areas of activity as such, but it is one of the means we use to promote our action. We train Veoliaforce volunteers and, increasingly, we train the staff of humanitarian partners in the use of our solutions. We are involved with Bioforce, the French Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières. In the field, we train the staff of UN agencies to take over the production of drinking water.

In a rural region of Senegal, a drinking water treatment plant has been installed by two desalination experts to provide the population with access to quality water. ©Veolia

It will soon be 2025; what prospects do you see for the work of the Veolia Foundation in a world where humanitarian and development needs are exploding and conflicts are spreading? What challenges do you think the Foundation will have to meet, and how might it adapt its modus operandi or approach?

This year we’re moving up a gear, both in terms of human resources, by setting up a network of Veolia ambassadors to increase the impact of our action in the regions, and in terms of material resources, by setting up hubs where our Aquaforces will be pre-positioned so that they can be transported more quickly to where they’re needed. The idea is that, with our small team of less than ten people, we can leverage our resources to duplicate more easily, deploy more quickly and respond more effectively.

More specifically, at a time when funding for humanitarian aid and development is falling and crossing the exponential curve of needs, do you think that foundations such as the Veolia Foundation have a greater role or responsibility to assume?

Our responsibility is that of the foundation of a group present in all essential services. We want to be able to respond whenever the need arises and our partners call on us.

In conclusion, what would you like to say to your partners in projects and actions, and to our readers?

A big thank you, because without them, we wouldn’t be much of anything! By submitting projects to us, by calling on us in emergencies or for development, they push us to be better. They are the key to our effectiveness. I might as well tell you that we haven’t finished working together, because it’s necessary, because it’s useful. At 20, you’ve got your whole life ahead of you!

Every year, around thirty Veolia employees from all business lines come here for training in humanitarian emergencies and development missions. ©Véolia

Interview by Pierre Brunet

Writer and humanitarian

David Poinard

Delegate General of the Veolia Foundation since April 2024, David Poinard is a hydrogeologist by training and holds a doctorate in urban hydrology from INSA Lyon. He has held a number of management positions at Veolia Water since 2001, and is also involved in Veolia Foundation operations as a Veoliaforce volunteer, working on development projects or in crisis situations (natural disasters and armed conflicts). He has also chaired the French Water Partnership (FWP) working group on ‘WASH in crisis and fragile contexts’ since 2020.

Veolia Foundation: Serving outreach and human development | Fondation Veolia

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Alain Boinet, Chairman of Défis Humanitaires.