UNICEF today launched an appeal for US$9.9 billion to provide life-saving emergency assistance to 109 million children in 146 countries affected by conflict and crisis in 2025.
Around the world, 213 million children are at the sharp end of unpredictable and volatile humanitarian emergencies. With 109 million children targeted by UNICEF for humanitarian assistance in 2025, donor funding is critical to ensure the response is timely, effective and sufficient
“The scale of children’s humanitarian needs is at a historically high level, with more children impacted every day,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Looking ahead to 2025, we estimate that 213 million children in 146 countries and territories will need humanitarian assistance over the course of the year – a staggeringly high number. It is UNICEF’s mandate to reach each of these children with the essential services and supplies they need, and to ensure that their rights are protected and upheld – a mandate that has guided our work for the past 78 years.”
Additionally, in 2024, more than 57.5 million children were born into countries affected by conflict or other humanitarian crises where UNICEF has an emergency appeal. That figure is expected to rise by at least 400,000 in 2025.
The US$9.9billion appeal for 2025 highlights the pressing need to tackle a growing array of humanitarian challenges confronting children in 146 countries.
As part of its Humanitarian Action for Children, which sets out the agency’s 2025 appeal, UNICEF plans to reach:
- 56.9 million children and women accessing primary healthcare in UNICEF supported facilities
- 34 million children 6-59 months screened for wasting
- 20.6 million children, adolescents and caregivers accessing community-based mental health and psychosocial support
- 11. 1 million women, girls and boys accessing gender-based violence risk mitigation, prevention and/or response interventions
- 24 million children accessing formal or non-formal education, including early learning
- 55.3 million people accessing a sufficient quantity and quality of water
The top five appeals by funding requirements for 2025 are for:
- Afghanistan: $1,188,778,304
- Sudan: $840,000,000
- Democratic Republic of the Congo: $804,295,490
- State of Palestine: $716,540,000
- Lebanon: $658,200,000
Notable results in 2024 include:
- 26.4 million children and women accessing primary health care
- 12.2 million children 6-59 months screened for wasting
- 17.4 million people accessing a sufficient quantity and quality of water for drinking and domestic needs
- 9.7 million children accessing formal or non-formal education, including early learning
- 12.6 million children, adolescents, and caregivers accessing community-based mental health and psychosocial support
Last year, donors contributed more than 50 per cent of UNICEF’s thematic humanitarian funding to just four emergencies – Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Syria, and Ukraine – a fraction of the 412 emergencies UNICEF responded to in 107 countries. Meanwhile, humanitarian operations in countries like Burkina Faso, Lebanon, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, and Myanmar are the most severely underfunded.
“Support for UNICEF's flexible humanitarian is critical for our work for children affected by crises,” said Russell. “Imagine what we can achieve for children working together through principled humanitarian action, creating a world where the rights of every child are protected and upheld, and where every child can develop and thrive - a world fit for every child.”
