When humanitarian partners are unable to respond—whether due to underfunding, access constraints or attacks—there are tragic results for the communities they serve. While some form of assistance reached nearly 116 million people in 2024, this represented just 72 per cent of people targeted through country-specific plans. This trend has been particularly stark in 15 countries that received less funding in 2024 compared to 2023, reflecting a broader pattern of decline. In 2023, whilst 142 million people were reached with assistance and protection, this was 15 million fewer than in 2022, coinciding with significant humanitarian funding cuts.
Cuts in food and nutrition assistance have pushed millions toward starvation and left some at risk of death
Underfunding and access constraints have drastically reduced food and nutrition support, leaving millions in need and facing acute hunger. In Afghanistan, food assistance was scaled down so severely in 2024 that entire districts were left without aid. In Chad, insufficient funding and the steady inflow of refugees, among other drivers, have worsened food insecurity, with the number of people facing crisis-level hunger rising from 3.4 million to 4.6 million in 2024, with figures for 2025 expected to increase. Ethiopia’s cereal rations were cut by 20 per cent by some partners, while in Haiti, underfunding is likely to push 2 million people to even more critical levels of food insecurity. In Syria, the World Food Programme (WFP) reduced monthly food assistance by 80 per cent, serving only one third of the severely food insecure population. To cope, more families are now selling properties, or sending children to work. In Malawi, negligible funding meant that the agricultural sector could reach just four per cent of its target, despite agriculture’s potential to mitigate food insecurity. In South Sudan, funding shortfalls meant food assistance reached only 77 per cent of the target, with 90 per cent of people who were reached receiving half rations. In Somalia, programme cuts reduced assistance from 6 months (end of 2023) to just 3 months, resulting in food consumption gaps for three quarters of the year.
Children facing acute malnutrition, whose lives and futures hang in the balance, are at risk due to underfunding and access constraints. In the DRC, more than 220,000 children with life-threatening severe acute malnutrition under age five went untreated by the end of 2024 due to lack of resources. In Nigeria, a lack of resources threatens shutting down nearly one third of the 813 facilities managing acute malnutrition by late 2024. In OPT, despite repeated attempts to scale nutrition programmes, only half of the acutely malnourished children targeted for treatment by 2024 will be reached.
Chikwawa District, Malawi
At Mfera Health Centre, a medical officer measures a child's arm circumference to assess malnutrition status.
OCHA/Milka NdunguUnderfunding of protection has left people at greater risk of violence, including exploitation and gender-based violence (GBV)
Gender-based violence continues to be one of the most underfunded response sectors globally, with just 27 per cent of the required funding for 2024 received by 24 November. In Venezuela, 80 per cent of girls lacked GBV prevention and response support, while in the DRC, a 70 per cent funding gap in the protection sector left 1.48 million people without protection services. In El Salvador, GBV received no funding in 2024, leaving more than 66,000 women at risk in highly violence-prone communities, and in Guatemala, only 28 per cent of the intended target population was reached. In Mozambique only six per cent of women and girls needing specialized GBV case management received support.
Amidst unprecedented threats to children and the growth of unexploded ordnance due to increased conflict, protection activities, including child protection and mine action, remained under-resourced. In Myanmar, 2.1 million people were unable to access protection services while 1.1 million children faced heightened risks of violence, abuse and neglect. Reduced funding in Yemen curtailed support for mine victims’ civil documentation services, and child protection.
At risk and overlooked: the gendered toll of humanitarian funding gaps
"It was a scorching day, and I was carrying a heavy bucket of water when labour started,” recalls Sayun, a 35-year-old woman in Yemen’s remote Sa’ada governorate. “My family called the local midwife, but hours of excruciating pain yielded no progress, and when the severe bleeding started, we were all shocked and scared.”
With her baby in breech, Sayun’s life—and that of her unborn child—hung in the balance. A harrowing journey brought her to a United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)-supported health facility where both lives were saved. But for millions of women and girls caught in humanitarian crises, this lifeline is out of reach.
Underfunding is not gender-neutral. When resources are scarce, the essential needs of women and girls are often the first to be compromised. Across Yemen, conflict and economic collapse have devastated the health-care system and underfunded maternal services mean women face life-threatening complications without obstetric care. In South Sudan, the world’s highest maternal mortality rates are set to rise as cuts to midwifery training programmes deprive communities of skilled birth attendants. In Haiti, political instability and recurrent disasters have pushed the health infrastructure to the brink, denying women access to reproductive health services and increasing maternal mortality.
The situation is equally dire in north-west Syria, after 14 years of conflict. Half of the region’s 63 active emergency obstetric and newborn care centres now face closure, jeopardizing the health and lives of 1.3 million women. Additionally, 29 women and girls’ safe spaces may close by the end of 2024 if funding gaps persist, affecting over 100,000 women who rely on these spaces for protection and vital support.
Climate-driven emergencies in East and West Africa exacerbate these challenges. In Somalia, millions displaced by drought and insecurity live in makeshift camps, where reproductive health services and gender-based violence protections are almost nonexistent. Similar conditions affect the Central African Republic, Chad and Niger where under-resourced health clinics offer only basic services and safe spaces for survivors are scarce.
Humanitarian agencies, constrained by insufficient resources, are forced into impossible choices, often leaving women and girls in a constant state of vulnerability. Gender-responsive funding could change this, ensuring that even in the harshest conditions, women and girls receive the support they need to survive, heal and build a future beyond crisis.
Under-resourcing and attacks against water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure are increasing disease risks
Access to clean water and adequate sanitation and hygiene, which is essential for survival, has been undermined in multiple countries, increasing the risk of death and disease. By mid-2024, more than 100 million targeted people globally (42 per cent) had not received WASH assistance due to underfunding and attacks on infrastructure. In the Central African Republic and Chad, outbreaks of Hepatitis E and other water-borne diseases spread due to inadequate water and sanitation support. In Uganda, only two of the 13 refugee-hosting settlements meet the minimum standard of 20 litres of water per person per day. In Ethiopia, 5.5 million people lacked WASH assistance, leaving them reliant on unsafe water sources. In Tanzania, underfunded settlements hosting DRC refugees have unacceptable water and sanitation conditions; school latrine ratios stand at 1:176—far below the 1:40 minimum standard.
Attacks against critical WASH infrastructure have left millions without access to clean water and basic hygiene. In Ukraine, attacks affecting power supplies and water sources have disrupted critical services, putting children’s lives and well-being at risk. In Sudan, conflict over the Golo water reservoir jeopardized access to clean water for an estimated 270,000 people in the city and nearby communities, including 130,000 children. By May 2024, 60 per cent of all WASH facilities in Gaza had been destroyed or severely damaged and, as pools of untreated sewage and heaps of uncollected waste grow, water-borne illnesses are spreading and many children are suffering from skin diseases and rashes. In north-west Syria, airstrikes in October 2024 struck a power station west of Idleb city, disabling two water stations that serve 30,000 people in 17 villages.
Gaza, Occupied Palestinian Territory
Malak (14) holds a bottle of water she filled from a UNICEF-supported water tank in Deir al-Balah. By May 2024, 60 per cent of all WASH facilities in Gaza had been destroyed or severely damaged, leading to an increase of waterborne illnesses.
UNICEF/El BabaCurtailed access to education is depriving children of their futures
Across the globe, education is under siege, leaving millions of children and adolescents without the support they need to thrive. In Sudan, conflict, and resource constraints have forced 17 million children out of school, potentially creating a ‘lost generation’. A staggering 1.8 million children in Mali are out of school, with over 90 per cent of schools rendered non-functional due to critical funding shortages. By late 2024, 70,000 children in Somalia could lose access to education as 340 learning spaces face imminent closure. Approximately 1.5 million girls and boys in Venezuela were not able to access educational assistance. In Zimbabwe, without any intervention, school dropouts in 2025 could surge to 1.8 million children. In Angola, insufficient resources meant educational programmes could only support half the refugee children they initially aimed to help. In El Salvador, over 56,600 children and adolescents are struggling to address their socio-emotional needs or recover learning losses in the absence of assistance due to underfunding.
Eastern Shan, Myanmar
Preschool children draw and color during an early childhood care and development session in a learning hub.
UNICEF/ Min Zayar OoInsecurity and resource shortages have devastated access to health care
Underfunding has decimated humanitarian health services in multiple countries. In Yemen, the cholera response has been critically impacted by the closure of 165 oral rehydration centres and 33 diarrhoea treatment centres, leaving only 14 of the latter expected to remain operational beyond December 2024. In the DRC, emergency sexual and reproductive health services reached less than 30 per cent of women of childbearing age. In Ethiopia, mobile health teams suspended operations in north-western Tigray region, due to underfunding. In Somalia, 116 health facilities closed in the first half of 2024, depriving hundreds of thousands of people of essential health and nutrition services. In Tanzania, over half of the health facilities in the country's largest camp for DRC refugees have closed, and understaffing has resulted in an average of one doctor for every 10,000 refugees. In Syria, half of health facilities across the north-west will be non-operational by December 2024. In Afghanistan, 3.7 million people could not access health services, while 352,000 children under age five and 258,000 pregnant and lactating women were deprived of malnutrition treatment.
The alarming rise in attacks against health care, has forced health providers to drastically reduce or shut down services altogether. In Lebanon, OPT and Sudan, the intensifying conflicts have been associated with increased assaults on health care, while ongoing violence in Haiti, Myanmar and Ukraine further jeopardize access to medical services. In Lebanon, 100 primary health centres and six hospitals have closed due to the escalation of the conflict. In OPT, the health-care system is crippled, with over 84 per cent of health facilities damaged and over 36 pre-existing hospitals non-functional. The Sahel also saw critical risks to health facilities, transport and patient access to health care.
Aden, Yemen
Three-year-old Jana sits with her mother in Al-Sadaqah Hospital, while receiving medical care.
OCHA/Ala’a NomanInsufficient resources have left millions without adequate shelter
Across the globe, when conflict or disaster strikes, emergency shelter is essential to human survival, yet it is one of the least-funded humanitarian sectors. Just 28 per cent of the amount required to respond worldwide had been received for Emergency Shelter and Non-Food Items as of 25 November. In Syria, winterization efforts remain only ten per cent funded, leaving gaps for 1.4 million people living in more than 1,000 IDP sites. In Cameroon, 1.8 million people will not have access to adequate shelter. In Mali, only 10 per cent of emergency shelter needs for displaced people were covered, leaving nearly 2.4 million people vulnerable, particularly during floods. In Sudan, shelter needs for 4.4 million displaced people remain unmet, forcing many into overcrowded camps and open informal settlements.
Cuts to resources are jeopardizing support for refugees and migrants
Responses for refugees and migrants are desperately under-funded in 2024. In Angola, over 1,000 DRC refugees remain unregistered and potentially deprived of their rights, whereas in the DRC, 3,000 refugees lack access to registration and documentation services. In Burkina Faso, underfunding delayed response packages for nearly 8,000 displaced families, with aid taking over three months to arrive in some places. Under the Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan for Venezuelans, food assistance reached 37 per cent fewer refugees and migrants than in 2023, while health assistance dropped by 17 per cent.
El Salvador
Vouchers are distributed to families living in shelters, who were impacted by rainstorms.
WFP/Versative/Diego SantamariaReferences
- Unless otherwise specified, data presented in this article covers the period January – October 2024 (except for UNICEF data, which covers January-June). Data in this article was provided directly by country operations, humanitarian partners/NGOs, clusters and UN agencies. For more country-specific information on cost of inaction/gaps consult the following documents on Afghanistan, Myanmar, Syria, Ukraine, Yemen.
- The estimated number of people reached by country plans in 2024 is nearly 116 million as of 25 November 2024. This does not include three country plans that could not report a people reached figure: Lebanon FA, OPT and the Philippines. For the most up-to-date figures see humanitarianaction.info.
- As of 25 November 2024, the number of people reached for 2023 is 142 million. The Burundi 2023 Humanitarian Response Plan is yet to report its final people reached figure.