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Current Requirements (US$)$2.30 billion
Crisis overview
In 2025, the war in Ukraine intensified and expanded geographically, deepening the impact on civilians and generating additional humanitarian needs. Expansion of hostilities in the front-line oblasts has rendered villages and towns uninhabitable. The systematic use of drones, glide bombs and long-range strikes has changed the nature of the war, causing civilian harm far beyond the front lines—including the city of Kyiv. Access to vulnerable people in the Ukrainian territories occupied by the Russian Federation is extremely limited. These trends are likely to continue into 2026, intensifying humanitarian needs and reducing the predictability of humanitarian operations.
Civilian deaths and injuries as a result of the war increased by 27 per cent in 2025 compared to the same period of the previous year, with over 14,500 civilian deaths and nearly 38,500 injuries verified since 2022. Over 2,700 attacks on health care and more than 4,300 damaged or destroyed schools have been recorded since February 2022. An estimated 2.5 million families remain without an appropriate shelter. Winter exacerbates these challenges, with widespread strikes on energy infrastructure, leaving millions without heating, water or electricity.
Sumy, Ukraine
A missile strike hit a busy street, killing dozens of civilians and injuring many more, as well as damaging homes, a public bus and an educational facility.
Humanitarian Mission Proliska.Displacement remains a defining feature of the crisis, with 3.8 million people internally displaced, including tens of thousands newly uprooted from front-line areas, among whom are older people and people with disabilities seeking urgent support. Front-line shifts and deteriorating security situation have triggered new waves of displacement, increasing the need for support for vulnerable evacuees along their journey from their places of origin through transit centres, and for some temporary accommodation in collective sites.
Protection concerns are rising, especially for older people, single women-headed households, children and displaced families who face disproportionate vulnerabilities and additional risks, including gender-based violence, trafficking, sexual exploitation and abuse. In Russian-occupied areas, nearly one million people face severe needs due to insecurity, ongoing human rights violations and intensified protection risks, including conflict-related sexual violence.
Response priorities and financial requirements for 2026
As part of the efforts to advance the Humanitarian Reset, the 2026 response has been framed around key humanitarian issues aimed at addressing needs generated by the war and organized around four strategic priorities:1) multisectoral front-line response, 2) countrywide support for those newly displaced and evacuated from high risk areas, 3) emergency assistance for those affected by strikes and 4) centrality of protection support for vulnerable IDPs and severely vulnerable groups at risk of not being covered by social protection networks.
The issue-based approach promotes a multisectoral response, prioritizing the most vulnerable population groups consistent with the 2025 HNRP. The response also considers needs in Russian-occupied territories across the four priorities, following a rights-based approach and using available data.
Geographic prioritization focuses on front-line and northern border areas, particularly Sumska and Chernihivska oblasts, where needs intensified and deepened in 2025. Activities that fall outside the humanitarian life-saving scope have also been identified for advocacy with the government and development actors.
In 2026, 4.12 million people are targeted for humanitarian assistance, with 3.58 million prioritized. This slight decrease from 2025 does not reflect an improvement in the situation, but rather a more focused and highly prioritized response.
Kharkiv, Ukraine
A boy stands beside a school damaged in an attack, highlighting the ongoing risks children face as schools in Ukraine continue to come under fire.
UNOCHA/Iryna ChernyshThe financial requirement for 2026 is $2.3 billion, of which $ 2.1 billion is prioritized, down from $2.6 billion in 2025. This reflects a streamlined response informed by realism and the severity of needs. It also considers the increase in the cost of operations (inflation). The response is built around multisectoral packages under each priority, combining assistance delivered in kind, through services, and in cash. The approach seeks to prioritise people with the highest multisectoral needs, avoid duplication, and remain flexible to changing conditions.
Challenges
Humanitarian operations in Ukraine faced severe access constraints in 2025, particularly near the front line, amid escalating hostilities and evolving warfare tactics. Due to changes in the front line, humanitarian actors lost access to more than 50,000 people in eastern areas previously supported with aid. Between January and October 2025, over 230 access incidents were reported, and four humanitarian workers were killed while conducting their duties. The military mobilization of staff and/or male personnel negatively affected the delivery of services.
Access to occupied areas remained extremely limited and did not meet the scale of needs. The humanitarian community will continue to advocate for greater protection of rights and access to ensure that assistance reaches all people in need, regardless of their whereabouts.
Ukraine
2025 in review: Response highlights and consequences of inaction
Response highlights
People targeted
4.8 million people reached: 80% of the target (expected 2025 projection reach of the 6.0 million target).
People prioritized
Hyper-prioritized reach: 3 million people — 63% of the 4.8 million.
People reached
Reach by strategic priorities: 810K front-line residents; 760K internally displaced people; 180K evacuees, vulnerable newly displaced and 320K people affected by strikes.
Humanitarian access
Forty convoys reached 45,000 people in hard-to-reach areas with life-saving assistance.
Gender-Based Violence
400K people accessed GBV services: 57% of the target (expected 2025 projection).
Localization
Localization commitment: 344 partners were national NGOs.
Zhytomyr, Ukraine
Aid workers assist people arriving by evacuation train from front-line areas, helping them access support and care in safer parts.
Rokada Charitable FoundationConsequences of inaction
Despite persistent challenges, humanitarian partners achieved tangible results across Ukraine in 2025. Receiving only 45 per cent of the $2.63 billion requested under the Humanitarian Response Plan reduced the ability of organizations to fully implement the original plan, including maintaining critical services in front-line areas and supporting all communities in need for the winter season. As a result, considerable numbers of people across the country remained without adequate shelter, health care, protection, food or access to safe water, while local and national partners faced mounting difficulties sustaining delivery of critical services for vulnerable groups, including children directly affected by the war, survivors of conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence as well as people with limited mobility in areas most affected by the war.
If the requested resources are not secured, more will be left without life-saving humanitarian support at a time when the capacity of the Government and other potential sources of assistance have already been overstretched by years of war.
As the war persists, ensuring the safety of humanitarian personnel and securing unimpeded access remain critical to sustaining life-saving operations for the most vulnerable civilians across Ukraine.
Kramatorsk Town, Ukraine
On 10 September, the Donetsk Region came under a wave of drone attacks, leaving civilians injured and damaging homes, apartment buildings, and schools. On that day, 82 affected households received emergency shelter kits from aid workers.
Angels of Salvation NGOUsing data to support localization in Ukraine’s front-line areas
As hostilities continue to devastate Ukraine and frontline shifts, humanitarian partners are adapting their response to keep pace with rising evacuation needs and mounting pressure on local systems. One of the most urgent challenges is managing the requests from front-line communities exposed to constant shelling and drone attacks. As one of many examples, the Ukrainian NGO Relief Coordination Centre (RCC) created in the Kharkiv region coordinates more than 290 local groups in several regions engaged in evacuations, logistics and data collection. With support from the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund and international partners, RCC strengthened its operations as demands surged. Thanks to this support, RCC in developed a digital Evacuation Dashboard for the Kharkiv Transit Centre, enabling real-time tracking of evacuee flows, origins, destinations and assistance received. The dashboard now informs decision-making by humanitarian partners, local authorities and volunteer teams. RCC also received training on collecting disability-disaggregated data, ensuring more inclusive assessments and services. “We have significantly grown in our data-management and visualization capacities,” said RCC Director Bohdan Yakhno. “These tools help the humanitarian community in the area to respond more effectively and advocate for people in greatest need.” This locally driven approach illustrates how the humanitarian community is together putting the Humanitarian Reset into practice, strengthening national capacities, improving accountability, and ensuring that aid reaches those most affected by the war despite shrinking resources and ongoing insecurity.