United Nations ? Countries rich and poor on Monday called for a $500 million U.N. fund to meet humanitarian emergencies after a year of devastating disasters from the Indian Ocean tsunami and earthquakes in Asia and hurricanes in the Americas to drought in Africa.

General Assembly President Jan Eliasson said the current $50 million revolving fund was insufficient, and the increase would help the United Nations respond quickly to sudden and underfunded crises.

“The complexity of today’s crises and the growing magnitude of disasters require that humanitarian assistance remains one of the highest priorities of the work of the United Nations,” he told the opening of a daylong debate on improving U.N. humanitarian and disaster relief.

The General Assembly adopted resolutions on the tsunami and quake without a vote.