The UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has allocated $110 million to neglected crises across Africa, Asia, and Latin America amid deep cuts to global humanitarian funding.
Tom Fletcher, the UN’s top aid official, stated that more than 300 million people urgently need assistance.
However, funding has been declining annually, with this year’s levels projected to reach a record low.
“Brutal funding cuts don’t mean that humanitarian needs disappear; today’s emergency fund allocation channels resources swiftly to where they’re needed most,” he said.
Targeted countries and key focus areas
According to Fletcher, one-third of the CERF funds will support Sudan and neighboring Chad, which hosts many displaced Sudanese.
“The allocation will also strengthen aid efforts in Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, Honduras, Mauritania, Niger, Somalia, Venezuela, and Zambia.
“Additionally, part of the funds will be directed toward life-saving initiatives to protect vulnerable populations from climate shocks,” he explained.
UNICEF warns of dire impact on children
Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director, expressed concern over funding cuts to overseas aid, stating that they severely limit the agency’s ability to reach millions of children in urgent need.
She emphasized that reductions by multiple donor countries come after two years of declining aid, despite unprecedented global needs.
“Millions of children are affected by conflict, need vaccinations against deadly diseases like measles and polio, and must be educated and kept healthy,” Russell said.
Russell noted that rising needs are outpacing available resources, and despite introducing efficiencies and innovations, UNICEF teams have stretched every contribution to its limit.
“But there is no way around it—these new cuts are creating a global funding crisis that will put the lives of millions of additional children at risk,” she warned.
Funded entirely by voluntary contributions, UNICEF has helped save millions of lives, achieving “historic progress.”
Since 2000, global under-five mortality has dropped by 50%. “UNICEF implores all donors to continue funding critical aid programs for the world’s children. We cannot fail them now,” Russell emphasized.
Providing a glimpse into the impact of aid cuts on one of the world’s most vulnerable nations, Stéphane Dujarric, UN Spokesperson, highlighted the situation in Afghanistan.
“Our humanitarian colleagues warn that Afghanistan continues to face a severe crisis driven by decades of conflict, entrenched poverty, climate-induced shocks, and rising protection risks, especially for women and girls,” he told reporters at the daily briefing in New York.
More than half of Afghanistan’s population—around 23 million people—require humanitarian assistance as the country remains under Taliban rule since their takeover from the democratically elected government in August 2021.
Alarming malnutrition rates and security threats
- Nearly 3.5 million children under five and over a million pregnant and breastfeeding women are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition, while explosive hazards continue to pose a deadly threat after decades of conflict.
- Every month, an estimated 55 people—mostly children—are killed or injured by ordinance.
- Dujarric warned that funding cuts are already significantly constraining the humanitarian community’s efforts to assist those most in need.
