INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Up to 11.6 million refugees are in danger of losing access to humanitarian assistance due to cuts in foreign aid by donor nations, the
United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.
This is about one-third of refugees normally supported by the U.N
agency, it said, Reuters reported.
“Our funding situation is dramatic
We fear that up to 11.6 million refugees and people forced to flee are losing access to humanitarian assistance provided by UNHCR,” said
Dominique Hyde, UNHCR’s director of external relations.
Just 23% of the UNHCR’s funding requirement of $10.6 billion has been fulfilled
so far for this year, it said.
The funding crisis stems from large foreign aid cuts by donor countries such as Sweden, France and Japan,
aid cuts.
Forced displacement is increasing globally, while humanitarian aid is sharply decreasing, creating a “deadly cocktail” that
places displaced populations at grave risk, according to a new report published on Friday by the UNHCR.
The agency said it has had to stop
or suspend about $1.4 billion worth of aid programmes, including a 60% reduction in emergency relief supplies in many countries, including
Sudan, Chad and Afghanistan.
Critical areas such as medical aid, education, shelter, nutrition, and protection are among the services being
lost.
Women and girls are disproportionately affected by UNHCR funding cuts, with the agency having to cut one quarter of its support to
programmes that provide protection and response to gender-based violence.
Women and girls in Afghanistan are the hardest hit by cuts, the
UNHCR said.
“Protection activities have been slashed by over 50%, undermining programmes on women’s empowerment, mental health and
prevention and response to gender-based violence,” Hyde said.
Globally the agency is downsizing by 30%, cutting 3,500 staff
positions.
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