New UN Aid Chief Pledges ‘Ruthlessness’ in Prioritising Funds Amid Declining Crisis Support

The newly appointed head of the UN humanitarian aid agency, Tom Fletcher, has vowed to take a “ruthless” approach in prioritising how funds are allocated, reflecting the growing difficulty in securing donations for crises in regions like Gaza, Sudan, Syria, and Ukraine.

Fletcher, a seasoned British diplomat who assumed his role last month, emphasised the need to focus resources amid an expanding number of prolonged and severe emergencies.

 “We will focus and target the resources we have,” he said, as his agency, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), launched its 2025 global appeal.

The appeal seeks $47 billion to assist 190 million people across 32 countries, although an estimated 305 million people globally require aid. 

“The world is on fire, and this is how we put it out,” Fletcher told reporters.

OCHA and other major humanitarian organisations, including the Red Cross, have faced a decline in funding for both longstanding crisis zones, such as Syria and South Sudan, and emerging ones like Ukraine and Sudan. 

The shortfall has had dire consequences, with only 43% of OCHA’s $50 billion appeal for 2024 fulfilled by November. This deficit resulted in an 80% reduction in food aid for Syria, where violence has recently intensified.

For 2025, the largest funding requests are for Syria ($8.7 billion), Sudan ($6 billion), the Occupied Palestinian Territory ($4 billion), Ukraine ($3.3 billion), and Congo ($3.2 billion). Fletcher stressed the need for hard choices in targeting aid. 

“I choose that word carefully, because it’s a judgement call — that ruthlessness — about prioritising where the funding goes and where we can have the greatest impact,” he explained.

Fletcher also acknowledged challenges with donor governments, particularly the United States. As the UN’s largest single donor, the US plays a crucial role in humanitarian funding. Fletcher said he anticipates spending “a lot of time” in Washington discussing the issue with the incoming administration. 

“America is very much on our minds at the moment,” he noted, adding that some governments “will be more questioning of what the United Nations does and less ideologically supportive of this humanitarian effort.”

This year has also been marked as the deadliest on record for humanitarian workers and UN staff, a toll exacerbated by the Middle East conflict that escalated after the October 7, 2023, attack by Palestinian militants in Israel.

Faridah Abdulkadiri

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