Foreign Aid Cuts and Global Impact – Part 1 – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1121

Foreign Aid Cuts and Global Impact – Part 1 – Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1121

Dear Colleagues! This is Asrar Qureshi’s Blog Post #1121 for Pharma Veterans. Pharma Veterans Blogs are published by Asrar Qureshi on its dedicated site https://pharmaveterans.com. Please email to pharmaveterans2017@gmail.com  for publishing your contributions here.

Preamble

Over the past year, nearly every major donor nation—led by the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and several European countries—has announced significant reductions in foreign aid budgets. What are these nations scaling back, and what does it mean for NGOs, communities, and the future of global development? Let’s have a look at the scale of the cuts and their ripple effects.

The Context

Global humanitarian aid continued to decline in 2024 with a funding shortfall stuck at a record high as new and existing conflicts and multiplying climate disasters left more than 320 million people in need of aid.

In 2024, $21.2 billion was raised to help dedicated country programs, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) figures. During the year, financial needs grew from a projected $46.4 billion to $49.6 billion due to escalating conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, meaning that as of November only 43% of the funds had been raised. This is a slight drop from 2023, when 45% of the funding target was met - the first year that funding fell below 50% of the target in more than a decade.

The dramatic shortfall in 2023 prompted the U.N. to target fewer people in 2024, aiming to reach 197 million out of 323 million people requiring assistance. As of November, only 116 million people had received assistance.

This year, the U.N. wants donors to provide $47.4 billion to enable it to deliver aid across the world. The appeal is the fourth largest in OCHA's history but aid chief Tom Fletcher said it still means some 115 million people will not receive the aid they need because the agency simply does not have the resources.

The Middle East and North Africa have overtaken sub-Saharan Africa as the region requiring the most financial aid because of conflict in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, and in Lebanon. The biggest share - some $15.9 billion - is earmarked for this region, followed by $12 billion for eastern and southern Africa. Addressing food insecurity will be a priority, according to OCHA, as hunger is set to intensify and worsen into 2025.

The World Food Program (WFP) projects that it will need $16.9 billion to respond to food shortages in conflict zones and during climate disasters, and to tackle malnutrition. Separately, the U.N. children's agency UNICEF has appealed for $9.9 billion to fund hygiene, food, education and health programs for 109 million children, calling 2024 one of the "worst years" for children affected by conflict.

Major humanitarian Crises - There Are Many More

Protracted armed conflicts in Sudan, Yemen and the Democratic Republic of Congo and escalating gang violence in Haiti are fueling hunger and displacing people and show no signs of ebbing in 2025.

Gaza

Credit: Reuters/Abed Khalid

Credit: Reuters/Ibrahim Abu Mustafa

More than 50,000 Palestinians killed, half of whom were women and children. Some 10,000 bodies buried under 40 million tons of rubble. More than 95,000 people injured in a land where half of all hospitals have been damaged or destroyed.

Beyond the broken bodies and obliterated buildings, another chilling statistic: 96% of children feel their death is imminent, and almost half want to die, according to a study released this month.

And the death toll keeps rising as 2.3 million people criss-cross the blasted land, seeking shelter from the daily Israeli airstrikes that pound an area just 45km long and 10km wide on the edge of the Mediterranean Sea.

Israel's ground and air campaign has killed at least 52,000 people, with just over half of those identified as women, children or older people, according to the latest data from the Gaza Health Ministry.

The Civil Emergency Service, tasked with finding people missing under rubble, on roads and in ruined buildings in Gaza says it has been notified of around 10,000 missing people.

At least 109,000 people have been wounded, according to Ministry of Health figures, cited by the United Nations.

More than 14,000 children have been killed in Gaza, according to estimates by Palestinian health authorities that were cited last May by the U.N. children's agency. An estimated 17,000 children are unaccompanied or separated from their families, UNICEF said. More children were killed in Gaza in the first four months of the war than the total number of children killed in conflicts worldwide in the past four years, the head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said in March. The use of explosive weapons condemned an average of 15 children a day to potentially lifelong disabilities, including limb injuries and hearing impairments, during 2024, Save the Children said this month. The charity noted the estimate was likely low and did not capture children suffering potentially lifelong psychological injuries.

Around 90% of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been displaced during the war, the U.N. said this month. The U.N. has said that the displaced are "continuing to survive in abysmal conditions, crammed in worn-out tents and damaged structures with limited food, water and other necessities". Some people have been displaced up to 10 times. Satellite imagery analyzed by the United Nations Satellite Centre in May showed 55% of the strip's buildings had been destroyed or damaged. The United Nations has said that removing 40 million tons of rubble could take 15 years and cost between $500 million and $600 million. In a best-case scenario, rebuilding Gaza's destroyed homes will take until at least 2040, but the process could take as long as 80 years, according to U.N. assessments.

Sudan

Credit: Reuters/Zohra Bensemra

War in Sudan has created the world's largest displacement of people, with more than 12 million people forced from their homes since the fighting began in April 2023. The civil war, pitting the Sudanese army against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has rapidly spread from the capital Khartoum to areas such as Darfur and states including Sennar, Al Gedaref, Al Jazirah and Blue Nile.

The United Nations estimates up to 15,000 people have been killed in Darfur alone. More than 8 million Sudanese are displaced within the country, and more than 3 million have become refugees in neighboring countries, including Chad, Egypt and South Sudan.

Human rights groups, including a U.N.-mandated mission, accuse both sides of widespread rights abuses, including rape, torture and arbitrary arrests. The paramilitary RSF is also accused of ethnic cleansing in Darfur.

The war has also led to a catastrophic food crisis. The U.N. declared famine in the North Darfur region in August. This means that people are already dying from hunger and related conditions such as malnutrition and infection. Around 25 million people in Sudan – more than half the population – face acute hunger, with children most at risk of developing severe acute malnutrition.

Yemen

Credit: ISNA Agency/HI

Yemen is experiencing one of the world's most severe humanitarian crises, primarily due to a combination of ongoing conflict, economic collapse and underdevelopment. The U.N. says 19.5 million people - almost half the country's population need assistance.

The crisis began escalating in 2015 when a civil war broke out between Houthi rebels, who control the capital Sana'a and much of the north, and the internationally recognized government. The conflict has drawn in regional powers, notably Saudi Arabia and Iran, exacerbating the situation. The warring parties agreed to a de facto truce in 2022, but flare-ups continue.

Widespread destruction of infrastructure, including hospitals, schools and essential services, have severely limited people's access to basics such as healthcare, clean water, electricity and education. A blockade imposed by the Saudi-led coalition has further restricted the flow of food, medicine and fuel, leading to shortages and inflated prices.

Yemen's economy has collapsed, with millions losing their livelihoods. The rial currency is in meltdown as oil and gas exports remain obstructed. The cost of food has increased by 28% this year. This has led to widespread poverty, making it difficult for families to afford food and basic necessities. A banking crisis has prevented people from accessing their deposits, further straining fragile business operations and delaying major humanitarian programs.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Credit: Reuters/Justin Makangara

Despite its fertile agricultural lands, abundant water and mineral resources, the Democratic Republic of Congo has faced decades of conflict, multiple disease outbreaks and the fallout from climate change, and that has fueled poverty and hunger. Fight for control over the country’s coltan mines and other metals between armed groups and the military has displaced more than 7 million people.

Already grappling with epidemics of measles and Ebola, the Democratic Republic of Congo was hit by a Mpox outbreak in 2024 that claimed the lives of more than 1,000 people and spread to several African countries.

In February, the country experienced its worst floods in 60 years, wiping out thousands of homes and hectares of farmlands.

According to the U.N. World Food Program, about 25.6 million people, a quarter of the country's population, are currently facing a food crisis.

Haiti

Credit: Reuters/Marckinson Pierre

Gang violence and a political crisis in Haiti has resulted in catastrophic humanitarian consequences in the Caribbean nation. Gun battles between gangs and the police in and around the capital Port-au-Prince have forced over 700,000 people, more than half of whom are children, to flee their homes. Many of Haiti's displaced live in makeshift settlements, with little to no access to basic services.

About 5 million people in Haiti, nearly half of the country's population, face acute hunger that is exacerbated by inflation, poor harvests and extreme weather events like hurricanes.

Gangs have taken over much of Port-au-Prince and expanded into nearby regions, where they are accused of indiscriminate killings, gang rapes, ransom kidnappings and causing critical food shortages. Haitian women and children bear the disproportionate burden of the surge in violence in gang-controlled neighborhoods, including rape and forced recruitment into gangs. According to the U.N.’s children agency UNICEF, up to half of all members in armed groups are children who are "trapped in a vicious cycle."

Cox’s Bazar Bangladesh

Credit: Shumon Ahmed/HI

In August 2017, 700,000 Rohingya men, women and children fled an upsurge in violence and persecution in Myanmar to seek refuge in the Cox's Bazar district of neighboring Bangladesh – a mass exodus that transpired in just a few weeks. Seven years later, Cox's Bazar is home to almost a million refugees. Living conditions are particularly difficult for people with disabilities, who make up 12% of the refugee population.

Some 110 professionals are providing rehabilitation services in the camps. The services they deliver play a crucial role in improving functional capacity, preventing complications and increasing autonomy.  Indeed, these services are essential for those who have had amputations, injured people and people with disabilities living with a variety of conditions, including malnutrition, respiratory issues and brain damage.

"We must not forget these people. The Rohingya crisis must not be forgotten... They need the help of the entire international community", concludes Farhana Akhter, HI Bangladesh project manager.

(HI is Humanity and Inclusion, a US-based Organization working in several countries)

Continued……

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For most blogs, I research from several sources which are open to public. Their links are mentioned under references. There is no intent to infringe upon anyone’s copyrights. If, any claim is lodged, it will be acknowledged and recognized duly.

References:

https://www.context.news/money-power-people/why-is-the-worlds-humanitarian-aid-gap-getting-bigger

https://www.context.news/money-power-people/four-humanitarian-crises-that-demand-more-attention-in-2025

https://www.oxfam.ca/news/biggest-ever-aid-cut-by-g7-members-a-death-sentence-for-millions-of-people-says-oxfam/

https://www.oxfam.org.uk/media/press-releases/biggest-ever-aid-cut-by-g7-countries-a-death-sentence-for-millions-of-people-oxfam/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/globalcitizen/2025/02/25/foreign-aid-is-shrinking-what-happens-next/

https://www.ft.com/content/fc2981d1-4298-42e2-8f35-4e4b7da04fcd

https://www.hi-us.org/en/news/amid-funding-cuts-millions-of-people-waiting-for-humanitarian-aid

https://www.developmentaid.org/news-stream/post/189631/cuts-in-aid-budgets