The United States government has announced more than $1bn in humanitarian and disaster response assistance to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme. The funding will support life-saving interventions in more than 40 countries amid record global hunger levels.
The package includes more than $218m for UNICEF and more than $800m for WFP. It will support food, nutrition, health, child protection, logistics, water and sanitation programmes in countries facing ongoing humanitarian crises, including Ukraine, Ethiopia and Burma.
WFP said the new funding would allow it to pre-position food supplies and expand cash assistance programmes. It will also help maintain supply chains in crisis-hit areas such as Lebanon, Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The announcement builds on the Trump administration’s December 2025 “Humanitarian Reset” memorandum of understanding with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The State Department said the agreement has led to reforms of the UN humanitarian system, bringing activities under a single local coordinator and improving efficiency and accountability.
The administration described the initiative as a new model of humanitarian assistance built on speed, accountability and measurable impact.
It said implementers can now mobilise quickly, in some cases within 24 hours ensuring funds reach those in need without delay.
The U.S. remains the World Food Programme’s biggest donor, although its contribution more than halved from 2024 to around $2bn in 2025.
In 2025, overall U.S. humanitarian funding to the UN fell to about $3.38bn from $14.1bn a year earlier, following major spending cuts after the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
WFP said it needs $13bn to reach 110m vulnerable people in 2026, as global humanitarian needs continue to rise due to conflict, weather-related shocks and economic crises.
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