Many people in the country do not realise the value of work done by humanitarian teams to provide support and help to people during a crisis.

Because of this Oxfam Vanuatu has organised a first ever humanitarian day to commemorate this.

Humanitarian response is part of the important services that helps to save people's lives.

Vanuatu's humanitarian teams came together to commemorate a first ever Humanitarian Day at Port Vila's Independence Park on Sunday 19 August 2018.

On the day, the Vanuatu Humanitarian Teams, consisting of Vanuatu Red Cross, Oxfam Vanuatu among others held a minute's silence to think of people who have lost their lives while on helping times of crises.

Humanitarian volunteers in Vanuatu and the world must leave families and their lives to help other people who are in need.

Peter Korisa, Operations Manager of Vanuatu's National Disaster Management Office, NDMO, stressed that Vanuatu needs to have sufficient resources and proper frameworks to be able to establish a good humanitarian response system.

On the day speeches came from spokeswoman of Oxfam Vanuatu, Vanuatu Red Cross Society and Dr Philipe Guyant, which told of the importance of the day.

This is not the first time time that this day has been commemorated and it will become an annual commemoration day.

Vanuatu went through a category 5 cyclone in 2015 and managed to recover slowly.

Three years later the Ambae Volcano is causing recovery efforts to be slow and tricky.

The Vanuatu Humanitarian teams and Government will continue to support the people of Ambae.