UN says aid cuts have stripped one million women and girls of critical support

GENEVA: The United Nations said on Friday that at least one million women and girls have lost access to essential support services because of steep reductions in foreign aid since January 2025, warning that women-led organisations in crisis settings are being pushed toward collapse.

In a new report, UN Women said the funding squeeze is hitting groups working in some of the world’s harshest humanitarian emergencies at a time when needs are rising. The agency said around 120 million women and girls currently require humanitarian assistance and protection, with global armed conflict at its highest level since World War II.

The report was based on responses from 855 women-led and women’s rights organisations operating across 52 countries affected by crisis. According to UN Women, 84% of those organisations said demand for their services had increased since January 2025, while nearly nine in 10 reported they were no longer able to meet existing levels of need. The agency also said two in five groups surveyed expect to close, either temporarily or permanently, within the next year.

Frontline groups under strain

UN Women linked the worsening situation to sweeping foreign aid cuts by major donors, including reductions introduced by US President Donald Trump after returning to office last year, alongside tighter spending by other donor governments.

Sofia Calltorp, UN Women’s head of humanitarian action, said the organisations now at risk are those responding directly to the gravest emergencies.

"The women's organisations at risk of being shut down are on the frontlines of the world's most severe humanitarian crises"

She added:

Every dollar withdrawn from women's organisations is a dollar withdrawn from survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, displaced mothers, girls forced from school, and communities struggling to survive.

To keep services going, many organisations are relying on unpaid work by their own staff. UN Women stated that 65% of women-led organisations reported employees working without pay, while nearly half said burnout among staff had increased.

Rising violence, shrinking protection

UN Women said the funding cuts are coinciding with a worsening protection crisis. In its statement, the agency said conflict-related sexual violence doubled in 2025 even as the support systems meant to assist survivors were breaking down. It also found that 86% of women’s organisations had seen an increase in gender-based violence in the communities where they work.

The agency said the impact is being felt in immediate, practical ways, including women arriving at shelters that are no longer operating, pregnant women being forced to travel long distances to reach clinics, and mothers struggling to secure food for their children.

UN Women also warned that the effects go beyond emergency relief. The weakening of women’s organisations is unfolding alongside what it described as a broader backlash against the rights of women and girls. According to the agency, one in five organisations has already halted work related to women’s leadership and gender equality, while more than half reported a decline in women’s participation in community leadership and local decision-making.