UN food, refugee agencies warn of huge cuts after funding losses

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The UN's food and refugee agencies have warned of dire cuts to their services as funding plummets, especially from key donor the United States under President Donald Trump.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) will cut staff by 25 to 30 per cent as contributions to the global aid agency have dropped, according to an internal email seen Monday by AFP.

The head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) warned Monday that reduced contributions could force a one-third reduction in its activities, despite worldwide conflicts that continue to strain its resources.

Trump has moved to slash US contributions to the UN and its agencies since returning to the White House, causing funding chaos as Washington was previously the largest contributor to many budgets.

So far, his administration has scrapped 83 per cent of humanitarian programs funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

The agency had an annual budget of $42.8b (156.2 trillion), representing 42 per cent of total global humanitarian aid, including major contributions to UN agencies.

Other countries have also cut funding to UN agencies this year, but the United States' contributions dwarfed most others in the humanitarian aid sector.

Internally displace persons go about their daytime activities at Lushagala camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) in the city of Goma, the capital and largest city of the North Kivu Province in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. (AFP PHOTO)

'Less with less'

The WFP is the world's largest humanitarian organisation, charged with preventing famine and serious hunger globally, playing a vital role in getting food to crises like the war in Sudan and disaster zones.

"WFP must reduce its worldwide workforce by 25-30 per cent, which could impact up to 6,000 roles," the email said.

"This structural shift -- necessary to preserve resources in support of vital operations -- will impact all geographies, divisions and levels in the organisation."

Before the cuts, WFP, which was founded in 1961, had 23,000 staff and a presence in 120 countries, according to its website.

"The scale of the workforce reductions needed is difficult news to say and even more difficult to hear. Yet it is the necessary and responsible decision given our tenuous funding outlook," said the memo.

At UNHCR, High Commissioner Filippo Grandi told the Security Council that funding cuts "may conclude with the retrenchment of my organisation to up to one-third of its capacity."

The United States has traditionally been UNHCR's top donor, making up more than 40 per cent of total contributions received, amounting to approximately $2b (sh7.3 trillion) per year, he noted.

But for 2025, the UNHCR has so far received around $350m (sh1.2 trillion) from Washington and is trying to convince the US administration to release an additional $700m (sh2.5 trillion), which has been frozen.

"I cannot emphasise more how dramatic the situation is in this very moment," Grandi said.

"If this trend continues, we will not be able to do more with less. But as I have said many times, we will do less with less. We are already doing less with less," he added.

UNHCR employs more than 18,000 staff across 136 countries, with approximately 90 per cent of those employees working in the field, according to its website.

Many UN agencies and departments are already feeling the impact of drastic cuts in donor contributions, forcing them to scale back vital operations for millions of people around the world.

The United States has defended its aid cuts, calling on other countries to do more.

"Every member state needs to better share the burden of humanitarian response to conflict," said acting US ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea. "The United States has disproportionately shouldered this burden for decades."