UN Launches "Life By Life" Appeal to Help 135M People

(MENAFN) The United Nations unveiled a massive $33 billion humanitarian funding request Monday, designating it the "Life By Life" appeal designed to reach 135 million vulnerable individuals throughout 2026, according to an announcement from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

OCHA issued a statement explaining the global scope: "The UN and partners today launched their global humanitarian appeal to save millions of lives where shocks hit hardest – in wars, climate disasters, earthquakes, epidemics and where crop failures occur."

The humanitarian coordination body identified an urgent first-phase target of $23 billion to rescue 87 million people from immediate peril, with operations eventually expanding to the full $33 billion threshold necessary to assist 135 million people "through 23 country operations and six plans for refugees and migrants."

UN Humanitarian Chief Tom Fletcher framed the initiative as a fundamental transformation in aid delivery methodology: "We're shifting power to local organizations, putting more money directly into the hands of the people who need it, and behind it all, we are renewing and reimagining humanitarian action with idealism, humility and hope."

OCHA revealed alarming shortfalls from the previous year's campaign, describing 2025 funding levels as the "lowest in a decade" at just $12 billion—a catastrophic gap that left humanitarians reaching "25 million less people than in 2024" following "brutal" funding cuts.

The agency detailed devastating downstream effects: "The consequences were immediate: hunger surged, health systems came under crushing strain, education fell away, mine clearance stalled and families faced blow after blow: no shelter, no cash assistance, no protection services."

The Occupied Palestinian Territory tops the 2026 funding requirements at $4.1 billion, targeting assistance for 3 million individuals "who have faced shocking levels of violence and destruction."

OCHA outlined additional critical needs: "In Sudan, the world's largest displacement crisis, $2.9 billion is needed for 20 million people. The largest of the regional plans is for Syria at $2.8 billion for 8.6 million people."

The agency indicated that Member States will face pressure to leverage diplomatic power in safeguarding civilians caught in warfare zones "by holding perpetrators – and those arming them – to account."

Fletcher issued a stark challenge to international donors regarding accountability and transparency: "I will then share the amounts committed and answer a simple question: did governments show up?" He concluded with grave implications: "The answer will define who lives and who falls through the cracks."

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