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The United Nations and its partners have requested $33 billion to provide humanitarian assistance to 135 million people in 50 countries by 2026, the UN press service reported. According to the Global Humanitarian Plan, released Monday, the plan prioritizes mobilizing $23 billion to provide immediate support to 87 million people affected by armed conflicts, climate disasters, earthquakes, epidemics, and famine.
"This appeal sets out where our collective energy should be focused first," said UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher, presenting the document.
Millions need support
The updated plan was presented against the backdrop of significant cuts to humanitarian programming this year, as well as a record number of attacks on aid workers.
The document includes detailed plans for 29 crisis zones. The largest request concerns the occupied Palestinian territory, requiring $4.1 billion to help three million people.
For Sudan, the plan includes $2.9 billion to assist 20 million people at the epicenter of the world's largest displacement crisis. An additional $2 billion is needed to support the seven million Sudanese who have been forced to flee the country.
The largest regional request is for Syria – $2.8 billion to help 8.6 million people.
For Ukraine, humanitarian agencies are requesting $2.3 billion to support 4.1 million residents in 2026.
Consequences of Lack of Funding
Tom Fletcher recalled that in 2025, humanitarian programs received only $12 billion—the lowest level in the past ten years. As a result, 25 million fewer people received aid compared to the previous year.
The consequences are tangible, Fletcher said: reduced food aid, overwhelmed health systems, and widespread famine in parts of Sudan and Gaza.
"Programs to protect women and girls have been cut, and hundreds of humanitarian organizations have closed. More than 380 humanitarian workers have been killed—a record," he noted.
Humanitarian workers under threat
Fletcher emphasized that humanitarian aid workers are working "at the limit of their capabilities, chronically underfunded, and under constant attack." Only 20% of funding requests are funded.
"We're sending an ambulance to the fire on your behalf. But now they're asking us to put out the fire as well. And there's not enough water in the tank. And they're shooting at us," he said.
Appeal to UN Member States
Over the next 87 days, humanitarian actors will seek support from Member States – “one day for every million lives we strive to save,” explained the head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
He also stressed the need to strengthen the protection of humanitarian workers – “not just by voicing concerns, but by holding accountable those who kill us and those who supply arms to those who kill us.”
