U.N. Refugee Agency announces budget cuts despite growing displacement

The U.N. agency responsible for providing humanitarian aid and support for displaced people has announced cuts in its 2026 budget due to financial constraints.

The agency plans to scale back its budget by nearly a fifth to $8.5 billion even as displacement continues to rise due to crises like the war in Sudan, a copy of its budget showed on Monday.

This means it will spend $8.5 billion as opposed to its budgeted $10.2 billion for the year 22025 due to financial constraints. 

According to the UN, drastic cuts in foreign aid are becoming increasingly common among major donors in Europe and the United States, with a direct impact on the most vulnerable populations. 

For example the United Kingdom, Belgium etc have all cut humanitarian spending while increasing military allocations.

At the end of June, less than 17% of the $46 billion needed to meet global humanitarian needs in 2025 had been received, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). This represents a 40% drop compared to the same period in 2024.

To cushion this, the agency plans to reduce posts by 25% or 3985 in the coming year. It will also close its regional bureau for Southern Africa effective 1st October.

Tom Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator says of the situation “The math is cruel, and the consequences are heartbreaking. Too many people will not get the support they need, but we will save as many lives as we can with the resources we are given.”

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