This month, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published its latest figures on international humanitarian aid funding, revealing a dramatic global decline of almost a quarter. We find this development deeply worrying. These cuts are already having serious and very real consequences for people in crisis situations worldwide.

Last year, funding cuts already forced us to close our country office in Colombia and end projects that provided support – primarily healthcare – to more than 350,000 people. Currently, the healthcare situation in Syria is deteriorating dramatically: Since the beginning of 2026, we have been forced to progressively close healthcare facilities across the country, with 17 health facilities expected to shut down by the middle of this year. “As a result, around 700,000 people will no longer have access to essential medical care,” says Ali Aburras, our Country Director in Syria. Funding for our projects also threatens to run out this fall in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh – the world’s largest refugee camp – where we have been providing healthcare services to nearly 57,000 people since 2017.

The war in the Middle East is already having a dramatic impact not only on people in the region, but also on many others around the world. This is because the severe fuel shortages resulting from the war are also affecting those who are already struggling to survive in difficult conditions. “The current fuel crisis is one of the greatest challenges we are currently facing,” says Kees Zevenbergen, Director of Programs at Malteser International.