The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has warned that declining funding could leave around 8.3 million refugees and internally displaced people without assistance this year and lead to the collapse of protection systems in some countries.
The agency has received only 32% of the $8.5 billion it requested for 2026 as of July, leaving a funding shortfall of $5.7 billion.
UNHCR said the funding gap is severely affecting refugee registration, child protection and services for survivors of gender-based violence. The agency estimates that the number of people under its mandate will reach 131.2 million by the end of 2026. It has already reduced its workforce by 33% in 2025, closed offices in 140 locations and suspended operations in 15 countries.
The agency also warned that further cost-cutting measures would not be enough to offset the funding shortfall.
“When registration stops, safe houses close or child protection services disappear, the very risks that people fled – violence, exploitation and abuse – reappear in displacement, trapping families in a cycle of vulnerability and forcing some to move again in search of safety or fall prey to traffickers,” said Dominique Hyde, UNHCR’s Director of External Relations.
According to him, protection cannot be reduced indefinitely without systems collapsing.