At least one million women and girls have lost access to life-saving humanitarian support over the past year as sweeping reductions in international aid funding force women’s organisations to scale back services or close entirely, according to a new U.N. Women report released on Friday.
The report found that nearly nine in 10 women’s organisations can no longer meet growing humanitarian needs despite a sharp rise in demand since January 2025, following what the agency described as the steepest decline in global aid funding on record.
The funding crisis has been driven in part by the Trump administration’s decision to cut billions of dollars in foreign assistance, while several other major donor countries have also reduced aid budgets amid fiscal constraints and higher defence spending. The United States had previously been the world’s largest provider of foreign aid.
Women’s organisations under growing strain
Around 120 million women and girls worldwide currently require humanitarian assistance and protection, according to U.N. Women.
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However, the report found that 40% of the 855 women’s organisations surveyed across countries including Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti could be forced to suspend operations temporarily or shut down permanently within the next year because of funding shortages.
Nearly 90% of respondents said they were no longer able to meet the needs of women and girls in their communities.
Sixty percent reported reaching fewer beneficiaries than they did before January 2025, despite demand for services continuing to rise.
The agency warned that funding reductions are creating significant gaps in humanitarian assistance because local women’s organisations are often the only groups able to safely reach women and girls in conflict zones and fragile settings.
Services cut as staff work without pay
The financial strain has forced many organisations to reduce staff, limit services and rely on unpaid workers.
According to the report:
- 65% of women-led organisations said staff are continuing to work without pay to keep essential services operating.
- More than three-quarters have reduced staffing levels.
- Half have introduced waiting lists or are turning away women and girls seeking assistance.
U.N. Women warned that these measures are weakening frontline humanitarian responses at a time when protection needs are increasing.
Gender-based violence services hit hardest
The report highlighted growing concerns over support for survivors of violence.
With cases of conflict-related sexual violence doubling globally last year, 62% of surveyed organisations said safe spaces for women and girls had either been reduced or closed because of funding cuts.
Many also reported scaling back gender-based violence case management, leaving survivors with fewer places to seek medical, legal and psychological support.
“Every dollar withdrawn from women’s organizations is a dollar withdrawn from survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, displaced mothers, girls forced from school, and communities struggling to survive,” said Sofia Calltorp, U.N. Women Chief of Humanitarian Action.
Broader impact on gender equality
Beyond emergency assistance, U.N. Women said funding cuts are also undermining longer-term efforts to advance women’s rights and leadership.
One in five organisations surveyed reported suspending programmes that promote women’s political participation, leadership and gender equality because of a lack of resources.
The agency described the cuts as part of a broader global backlash against gender equality, warning that years of progress risk being reversed if funding continues to decline.
Future outlook
U.N. Women urged governments and international donors to restore and strengthen humanitarian financing for women-led organisations, warning that continued reductions would deepen humanitarian crises and leave millions more women and girls without essential protection and support.
The agency said local women’s organisations remain critical to delivering aid in some of the world’s most fragile environments and warned that without sustained funding, many may be unable to continue operating over the coming year.
With information from Reuters.
