UN allocates $160 million for 12 humanitarian crises

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announced a $160 million allocation from the Central Emergency Response Fund on Oct. 2, directing $150 million to responses in 12 humanitarian crises and setting aside $10 million for disability-related needs across those contexts. The announcement brought CERF allocations for 2026 to $483 million.

The country-response funds are intended to support people in need of life-saving assistance in Afghanistan, the occupied Palestinian territory, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Cuba. The allocation is for responses in those places; it is not a reported count of people already helped.

Country-response allocations

Disability funding and access constraints

The separate $10 million allocation is intended to address the needs of people with disabilities in the 12 crises and make humanitarian assistance more accessible and inclusive. OCHA did not provide a country-by-country division of that funding. The UN Global Disability Fund may also provide up to $4 million in complementary funding and technical support through its Inclusion Catalyst Hub, including support for local organizations of persons with disabilities. That potential support is additional to, and not part of, the $160 million package.

The UN described 87 million people as the target of a wider 2026 effort to reach people facing the most severe humanitarian needs. That figure refers to the broader effort, not a confirmed number of people expected to receive assistance through this allocation. OCHA did not give country-level beneficiary estimates for the funded responses.

Humanitarian access is another constraint identified by the UN. Afghanistan, the occupied Palestinian territory, South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen are among the funded contexts also included in a UN call for urgent diplomatic action in 10 priority places. Humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher urged leaders to open access and remove obstacles to aid delivery. The UN said improved access across the 10 priority contexts could unlock assistance for 11 million people; that figure concerns the broader access effort, not beneficiaries of the $160 million allocation.

The announcement establishes funding allocations, not that money has reached recipients or assistance has been delivered. Implementation of the funded responses and efforts to secure humanitarian access are the identified next steps. OCHA did not announce a disbursement schedule or a country-level delivery timetable.