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What is the Humanitarian Thematic Fund?

The fund operates in line with UNFPA’s commitment under the Grand Bargain; an agreement among humanitarian aid donors and agencies to deliver flexible financing, reduce administrative costs, simplify reporting requirements, and enhance engagement between humanitarian and development actors. As an expedited, quality-assured, emergency funding mechanism, the HTF backs response and preparedness efforts. It helps country offices close critical funding gaps that are not met through regular or bilateral financing. Financed by governmental and private donations, the HTF allows UNFPA to act quickly and efficiently, wherever humanitarian need arises.

Ancha attends an appointment along with her 3-year old child at a UNFPA-supported mobile health clinic, where nurse Juliana provides her with an iron supplement.

Why invest in the fund?

The HTF offers the following set of advantages, making it the preferred mechanism for investing in UNFPA humanitarian action:

  • Faster deployment of resources: Once the contribution has been received by the HTF, resources can be allocated to any emergency response in as little as 24-48 hours. This is a much faster turnaround when compared to creating individual funding agreements for each emergency.
  • Increased flexibility and adaptability: HTF funds are allocated to countries dynamically throughout the year, allowing the deployment of resources when and where they are needed. Unspent HTF resources can be easily re-deployed to a different response when deemed necessary.
  • Streamlined reporting: The burden of reporting is greatly reduced when working with HTF resources. One consolidated and comprehensive report is issued by UNFPA on a yearly basis, taking stock of all HTF funded interventions.
  • Reduced indirect cost rate: Because of the reduced overhead structure of the HTF, the indirect cost rate applicable to HTF contributions is 7%, which is lower than the standard 8% applied to bilateral funding agreements.
  • Robust workflow and quality assurance mechanism: HTF allocations to humanitarian interventions follow an established workflow whereby UNFPA country offices submit short proposals which are assessed by technical experts in the Regional Office and Humanitarian Office. Recipient countries receive technical assistance and monitoring support throughout the implementation of the HTF-funded programme activities.

2024 Summary

In 2024, the Humanitarian Thematic Fund continued to enable UNFPA to deliver rapid and life-saving responses worldwide. A total of $48.6 million was allocated for time-critical and life-saving humanitarian support in 37 countries (including regional offices). The contributions to the HTF totalled around $44.1 million, with the top six contributors being Sweden, Norway, Germany, Ireland, Republic of Korea and Canada. 

HTF Recipients in 2024

Arab States

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

8

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Arab States

Country Highlights
  • Occupied Palestinian Territory

    Occupied Palestinian Territory

    Building on efforts from 2023, funding from the HTF and Emergency Fund enabled UNFPA Palestine to deliver critical, life-saving interventions across Gaza and the West Bank. Over 40,000 individuals accessed sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, including maternity care through expanded services at Al Awda Hospital, mobile medical teams, postpartum visits in shelters, and adolescent-focused services in schools and youth-friendly clinics. The deployment of containerized maternity clinics and essential supplies helped address severe gaps in healthcare access. In parallel, more than 8,500 individuals received GBV prevention and response support, including through dignity and menstrual hygiene kit distribution, cash assistance, and the expansion of mobile safe spaces. UNFPA also partnered with local organizations to strengthen shelter services for GBV survivors.

    Several HTF-supported initiatives focused on adolescents and youth, combining capacity building with direct service delivery. These included the development of a pocket guide for youth in humanitarian settings, implementation of youth-led initiatives, and provision of psychosocial support and comprehensive sexuality education. Youth groups received training in emergency preparedness and mental health first aid, while the Y-PEER network mobilized activities across Jerusalem and Gaza. Digital platforms such as the Mostashari virtual health service and Shubbak Al Shabab helpline continued to ensure youth access to SRH services, complemented by educational television content to reach adolescents in remote areas. With additional contributions in 2025, UNFPA is scaling up its Gaza response to sustain health services, expand protection, and uphold the dignity and rights of women and youth amid ongoing conflict.

  • Sudan

    Sudan

    In 2024, Sudan experienced significant shifts in the conflict, with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) capturing large areas and advancing toward key towns like Damazine and Gedaref during the first three quarters of the year. In response, the Sudanese Armed Forces began regaining control in the south and central regions by the end of the year. RSF attacks increasingly targeted civilian infrastructure with drones, including electricity plants and agricultural facilities, exacerbating already dire conditions. These developments triggered mass displacement, deepened humanitarian needs, and further constrained access. Despite limited media coverage, Sudan’s crisis was considered one of the world’s worst in 2024, with 12 million people displaced and at least 20 famine pockets in the west and south by December. A famine prevention plan was launched in April 2024 to scale up life-saving interventions.

    With support from the HTF, UNFPA strengthened its supply chain through Chad to deliver assistance into Darfur, creating a critical pipeline that bypassed frontline access challenges. The fund enabled the establishment of independent warehousing and a dedicated logistics team, alongside the recruitment of key staff including specialists in SRH, mental health, clinical management of rape, access, and supply. The HTF also made it possible to procure essential supplies for newly accessible areas like Gezira and Khartoum and respond in underfunded displacement zones such as Ad Dabbah. These investments have allowed UNFPA to expand its reach and deliver essential services in one of the most complex and under-resourced humanitarian settings globally.

     

  • Lebanon

    Lebanon

    The humanitarian crisis in Lebanon deepened significantly following the escalation of hostilities in late 2023 and continued conflict through late 2024, leading to the displacement of one million people and the disruption of essential services. In response, over $1 million from the HTF was mobilized to complement support from the Emergency Fund and bilateral donors. These resources enabled key preparedness and response efforts, including stocking and distribution of dignity kits for displaced women and girls, GBV training for frontline workers, and deployment of surge support through a humanitarian coordinator, security advisor, and a UNFPA Emergency Response Team mission. The HTF also financed a GBV coordinator to strengthen coordination within the GBV Working Group.

    Crucially, HTF support enabled partnerships with two women-led local organizations to deliver GBV services, such as case management, psychosocial support, and cash assistance in Bekaa and Baalbek. The fund also supported awareness-raising activities on GBV and PSEA in collective shelters and host communities. In the area of sexual and reproductive health, displaced women received midwifery care, SRH information, and access to institutional deliveries, including C-sections, alongside cash assistance and baby kits. The HTF further funded mental health and psychosocial support services and enabled the restoration of damaged healthcare infrastructure through emergency obstetric training, the distribution of IARH kits, and the provision of essential medical equipment to government health centres. These efforts helped restore access to life-saving SRH services for vulnerable populations amid ongoing instability.

Asia & the Pacific

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

6

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Asia & the Pacific

Country Highlights
  • Myanmar

    Myanmar

    The escalation of armed conflict and deteriorating security in Myanmar since October 2023 has led to a sharp rise in humanitarian needs, with over 3.1 million people displaced by mid-2024 and 18.6 million identified as requiring assistance. The conflict has severely restricted access to affected areas, particularly in regions like Kachin, the South-East, and Rakhine State, where the monsoon season has further compounded operational challenges. Territorial shifts among armed actors have created volatile conditions, making it increasingly difficult to deliver aid to women and girls in need.

    To address these challenges, HTF funding has been instrumental in scaling up UNFPA’s humanitarian response, complementing Emergency Fund resources starting in June 2024 and continuing into 2025. The HTF has supported the procurement and distribution of 19,500 dignity kits and 9,000 clean delivery kits, with additional support from local partners procuring menstrual hygiene items or providing cash for dignity items closer to the point of need. These distributions are often linked to broader GBV programming, providing information on services and PSEA. In coordination with initiatives like the Joint Ceasefire Monitoring Committee, UNFPA has delivered aid in ethnic armed group-controlled areas using a ‘no-regret’ frontline response approach. As of early 2025, HTF-funded activities have expanded to include support for the response to the March 2025 earthquake, reinforcing the fund’s critical role in addressing both ongoing and sudden-onset crises in Myanmar.

     

  • Bangladesh

    Bangladesh

    In 2024, Bangladesh was hit by devastating floods across several eastern districts, including Sylhet, Chittagong, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts. The Feni district was among the hardest hit, with near-total submersion and isolation due to damage to roads and communications infrastructure. UNFPA estimated that 1.6 million women of reproductive age were affected, including over half a million adolescent girls and approximately 80,000 pregnant women. Immediate needs included basic non-food items and urgent protection measures, especially in evacuation centres where the safety of women and girls was at risk. With most health facilities flooded, access to essential health services was severely limited.

    HTF funding enabled UNFPA to scale up its humanitarian response, filling critical gaps in Feni, Noakhali, Khagrachhari, and underserved areas like Cumilla city. The fund supported SRH and GBV coordination, deployed midwives, and provided mental health and psychosocial services. It also enabled the delivery of 500 baby kits, 15 emergency SRH mobile camps, and menstrual health support for 3,700 adolescent girls. In the area of GBV response, the HTF funded the distribution of 2,000 dignity kits and provided unconditional cash to 4,000 women, including transgender women. Additional interventions included the dissemination of life-saving GBV information, strengthening local service providers, remote and in-person GBV case management, and conditional cash assistance to prevent child marriage and keep girls in school. These targeted efforts helped protect the health, rights, and dignity of women and girls during a time of acute vulnerability.

East & Southern Africa

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

6

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East & Southern Africa

Country Highlights
  • South Sudan

    South Sudan

    In 2024 and into 2025, the HTF has supported two major humanitarian responses in South Sudan: delivering integrated SRH-GBV services to Sudanese refugees and host communities, and responding to climate-induced emergencies such as alternating floods and droughts in Rubkona, Pibor, and Aweil East counties. Following the outbreak of conflict in Sudan in April 2023, South Sudan has received more than 460,000 refugees, with an additional 90,000 people in host communities requiring urgent support. The compounding impact of climate shocks has further exacerbated vulnerabilities and humanitarian needs across the country.

    HTF and Emergency Fund contributions have enabled UNFPA to sustain life-saving interventions through mobile and static service delivery, women- and girl-friendly spaces, one-stop centres, and safe houses. The funding also supported the procurement and distribution of IARH and dignity kits and reinforced UNFPA’s leadership role in GBV coordination at both national and sub-national levels. As the crisis continues to deepen in 2025, with over two-thirds of the population in need, HTF-supported activities remain critical. The healthcare system is under severe strain, and ongoing conflict continues to disrupt access to maternal health and GBV services, making flexible, sustained funding more essential than ever.

  • Uganda

    Uganda

    Uganda, Africa’s largest refugee-hosting country, is home to more than 1.8 million refugees and asylum seekers from across the region, including Sudan, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and others. In 2024, the number of arrivals increased due to worsening crises in neighbouring countries, placing additional strain on an already overstretched humanitarian response. Gaps in coverage and quality of essential services continue to widen, particularly in refugee settlements and surrounding host communities.

    With support from the HTF and the Emergency Fund, UNFPA strengthened service delivery in 2024 through the establishment of outreach posts in Kiryandongo refugee settlement and host communities. This included the deployment of midwives, medical officers, volunteer health workers, and interpreters to eight health facilities. Key interventions included the distribution of 1,630 menstrual health management kits and 1,250 dignity kits, 428 emergency obstetric referrals via 24/7 ambulance services, and cash voucher assistance for 1,200 beneficiaries. Capacity-building efforts reached hundreds of healthcare providers, community leaders, and stakeholders through trainings on SRH, GBV, clinical management of rape, mental health and psychosocial support, and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse. Three women- and girl-friendly safe spaces were also established, benefiting more than 6,000 women and girls with access to protection, information, and support services.

Eastern Europe & Central Asia

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

6

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Eastern Europe & Central Asia

Country Highlights
  • Ukraine Regional Crisis

    Ukraine Regional Crisis

    The conflict in Ukraine intensified throughout 2024, compounding an already dire humanitarian situation. With over 2,000 attacks on healthcare facilities since February 2022, the system is under immense strain, endangering the lives of patients and health workers alike. Widespread power outages, psychological distress from ongoing shelling, and rising living costs have created a crisis within a crisis. By December 2024, approximately 6.8 million people had fled Ukraine, with 93 per cent hosted in European countries, while 3.7 million remained displaced within Ukraine. As needs escalated, UNFPA responded across affected regions, including Moldova, Belarus, and EU neighbouring countries, with significant support from the HTF. 

    In Moldova, where over 110,000 Ukrainian refugees reside, UNFPA delivered robust GBV and SRH services through a network of 32 static and mobile Safe Spaces, reaching over 110,000 unique users since the start of the war. In 2024 alone, more than 8,000 individuals accessed tailored GBV response services, while nearly 20,000 participated in prevention initiatives. UNFPA also trained over 1,000 frontline service providers and social workers in survivour-centred approaches and expanded access to health services by equipping perinatal centres, delivering ambulances, modernizing clinics, and deploying mobile gynaecological units. In EU neighbouring countries such as Poland, Romania, and Slovakia, HTF funding enabled continued GBV and SRH services for Ukrainian refugees, in partnership with local civil society and women-led organizations. Innovative tools like the SafeYou app were launched in Romania and Poland, while a major GBV awareness campaign in Slovakia reached approximately one million people. At the regional level, UNFPA continued to play a leadership role in coordination platforms and technical support, helping to ensure a consistent, high-quality response across multiple countries impacted by the Ukraine crisis.

  • Armenia

    Armenia

    The Nagorno-Karabakh crisis led to the arrival of thousands of refugees in Armenia at the end of 2023, a situation that further deteriorated in 2024. With more than half of the refugee population being women and girls, the demand for SRH services — including obstetric care, contraception, and the prevention and treatment of HIV and other STIs — rose significantly. UNFPA responded through funding from the HTF and Emergency Fund, working closely with the Ministry of Health to ensure that SRH services aligned with national priorities. Beyond medical care, UNFPA placed a strong emphasis on mental health and psychosocial support for women and girls, recognizing the trauma many had endured. A network of certified trainers was established through a training-of-trainers initiative on the Minimum Initial Service Package, which enabled widespread capacity-building efforts across Ararat, Vayots Dzor, Tavush, and Gegharkunik regions. Additional refresher trainings were delivered to regional obstetrician-gynaecologists and midwives on emergency obstetric and neonatal care.

    To strengthen trauma-informed care, UNFPA also trained 137 SRH service providers in psychological first aid and stress self-management techniques. Through partnerships with local mental health organizations, refugees received direct psychological support, psychiatric consultations, and referrals for specialized care. UNFPA distributed IARH kits to key SRH facilities to maintain service continuity, and, in collaboration with Armenian Progressive Youth, provided cash and voucher assistance to over 2,000 pregnant and lactating women. The assistance package included pharmacy vouchers and information materials on breastfeeding, parenting, GBV prevention, STI protection, and safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse. These integrated efforts helped ensure that both refugees and host communities had continued access to comprehensive, quality SRH care during an increasingly complex humanitarian emergency.

Latin America & the Caribbean

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

2

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Latin America & the Caribbean

Country Highlights
  • Haiti

    Haiti

    Haiti continued to experience overlapping political, security, and humanitarian crises throughout 2024. The country’s recovery from the 2010 earthquake remains incomplete, while escalating gang violence — particularly in Port-au-Prince — has paralyzed daily life, disrupted fuel deliveries, and triggered widespread displacement. Insecurity, including kidnappings and killings, has become commonplace, with women and girls facing heightened risks of GBV in displacement sites and vulnerable urban areas. The humanitarian situation in the capital continues to worsen as displacement increases and access to essential services remains severely limited.

    With support from the HTF, UNFPA scaled up its response by deploying GBV mobile teams, strengthening SRH and GBV services in nine health facilities, establishing four women’s safe spaces, and providing cash assistance and dignity kits. More than 14,200 people received SRH services, including 4,000 adolescent girls, and 3,700 births were assisted. Ten mobile clinics operated in displacement sites, and over 11,000 individuals accessed family planning services. UNFPA also trained 34 medical staff in emergency obstetric and newborn care and the Minimum Initial Service Package. On the GBV front, over 12,500 people received survivour-centred services, and more than 21,000 were reached with awareness-raising activities. UNFPA’s efforts prioritized reaching displaced populations and GBV survivors in high-risk areas such as Port-au-Prince, Artibonite, and the Northern and Southern departments, ensuring access to life-saving care and protection despite extreme operational challenges.

  • Cuba

    Cuba

    In the aftermath of Hurricanes Oscar and Rafale, which struck Cuba just weeks apart in late 2024, HTF funding enabled the country office to deliver critical SRH services to communities impacted by widespread flooding, landslides, and infrastructure damage. Hurricane Oscar hit four municipalities in Guantanamo province amid an ongoing electricity crisis, while Hurricane Rafael battered nine municipalities in Artemisa and Mayabeque provinces with winds up to 185 km/h. Both storms caused significant disruption to housing, health, and social services, as well as water and power systems, creating urgent humanitarian needs, particularly for women and girls.

    In coordination with the United Nations system’s health cluster response, UNFPA supported the revitalization of essential SRH services in ten primary healthcare facilities and six referral hospitals across 16 municipalities in the hardest-hit provinces. This included the procurement and distribution of 130 IARH kits, essential for managing obstetric complications, treating STIs, preventing unintended pregnancies, and supporting clinical care for survivors of sexual violence. In addition, 900 dignity kits were distributed to meet the hygiene needs of women, adolescents, and vulnerable groups. Twenty healthcare workers and decision-makers were trained on the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) to enhance emergency SRH response capacity. The HTF’s flexible support enabled UNFPA to act swiftly in the early stages of the crisis while other funding sources, such as CERF and the European Union, were being mobilized.

West & Central Africa

Humanitarian Thematic Fund > HTF Recipients

9

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West & Central Africa

Country Highlights
  • Chad

    Chad

    In 2024, Chad faced multiple, overlapping crises, including severe flooding that began in late July and affected nearly 2 million people by year’s end. The flooding, combined with a growing influx of Sudanese refugees and returnees, significantly disrupted essential services, particularly SRH and GBV support. Among the 1.8 million forcibly displaced people in Chad — comprising refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, and migrants — 88 per cent were women and children, a population particularly vulnerable to GBV and at increased risk due to limited access to SRH services. The strain on the healthcare system resulted in shortages of reproductive health supplies and heightened maternal mortality and protection concerns.

    HTF funding, complemented by the Emergency Fund, enabled UNFPA to respond to these compounding emergencies. Support included the procurement and distribution of life-saving reproductive health supplies, especially for emergency obstetric care, to health facilities across affected areas. Midwives were trained and deployed to ensure safe childbirth, while psychosocial support workers provided care for survivors of violence. In addition, displaced women and girls received essential hygiene items, helping to maintain dignity and health in challenging conditions. This timely and flexible support was critical to maintaining continuity of care and addressing urgent SRH and GBV needs amid a rapidly evolving humanitarian crisis.

     

  • Niger

    Niger

    Severe flooding in Niger in 2024 caused one of the most catastrophic humanitarian crises the country has seen in decades. The regions of Maradi, Dosso, Zinder, and Tahoua were hardest hit, with over one million people affected and more than 450,000 displaced. The scale of destruction was immense: over 100,000 homes collapsed, 150 classrooms were destroyed, eight health centres were damaged, and 13,000 hectares of farmland were submerged, decimating food supplies and livelihoods. The floods further deepened existing economic and security challenges, exacerbating food insecurity and malnutrition — particularly among pregnant and lactating women. By the end of 2024, an estimated 4.6 million people in Niger required humanitarian assistance, including nearly one million women of reproductive age.

    With support from the HTF, UNFPA responded by delivering SRH to over 140,000 individuals through 62 supported health facilities. This included the provision of tents, mama kits, mobile clinics, and the deployment of professional midwives. To facilitate access to care, 204 obstetric emergencies were supported with cash and voucher assistance for transportation. In response to the heightened risk of violence, four women and girls safe spaces were established, hosting over 2,100 individuals. Nearly 2,000 women and girls received dignity kits, and 634 adolescent girls were provided with menstrual hygiene supplies. UNFPA also strengthened coordination by establishing departmental working groups focused on preventing and responding to gender-based violence across 11 flood-affected departments, ensuring a more organized and inclusive humanitarian response.

The term ‘Countries’ includes regional and sub-regional offices

Fund Reports

The Humanitarian Thematic Fund (HTF) is a multi-donor, pooled funding mechanism and represents UNFPA's most flexible humanitarian funding instrument, allowing the oragnization to make timely and strategic funding allocations to humanitarian cries around the globe.

UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2024 Annual Report

UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2024 Annual Report

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Download Annual Reports

  • Document
    UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2023 Annual Report
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  • Document
    UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2022 Annual Report
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  • Document
    UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2021 Annual Report
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  • Document
    UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2020 Annual Report
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  • Document
    UNFPA Humanitarian Thematic Fund 2019 Annual Report
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The HTF in 2025

During 2025 the HTF remained central to UNFPA’s ability to deliver timely, life-saving support to women and girls amid a growing convergence of crisis. With $70M allocated to 37 countries* — including both rolled-over and new funds — the HTF has enabled sustained, adaptive programming in contexts ranging from protracted conflict to climate-induced disasters. Generous contributions totalling $64.8 million* from several donors allowed the HTF to ensure the provision of essential services in sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence prevention. In an increasingly complex humanitarian landscape, the HTF continues to distinguish itself as a strategic tool for advancing flexible, localized, and integrated responses aligned with broader reform efforts across the humanitarian sector.

 

* Interim figures as of 31-Dec-2025

Contributions in 2025

Interim figures as of 31 Dec 2025. Some funds are softly earmarked for regional and/or thematic interventions.
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