ISLAMABAD: The United Nations and its partners on Monday launched their 2026 global humanitarian appeal, with $64.9 million specifically earmarked to support 1.9m vulnerable people in Pakistan as part of the $33bn plan aimed at saving lives threatened by wars, climate disasters, epidemics, earthquakes and crop failures worldwide.

The humanitarian appeals’ immediate priority is to save 87 million lives with $23bn in funding, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said. Ultimately, in 2026, the aim is to raise a total of $33bn to support 135m people through 23 country operations and six plans for refugees and migrants.

The appeal, titled ‘2026 Response Plan’ earmarks $64.9m to provide assistance to 1.9m people in Pakist­­an. The aim of the appeal, called ‘Life by Life’, is to reach 135m in 50 countries in 2026, the UN agency said.

UNOCHA noted that in 2025, 98m people received help despite funding cuts and attacks on aid workers.

Occupied Palestinian Territory gets the largest individual plan — $4.1bn for three million people

In 2026, the largest individual response plan is for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, where $4.1bn is needed to assist 3 million people who have experienced shocking levels of violence and destruction. In Sudan, the world’s largest displacement crisis, $2.9bn is needed for 20 million people. The largest regional plan is for Syria, with $2.8bn targeted for 8.6 million people.

The highly prioritised appeal follows a year in which humanitarian lifelines were strained and, in some places, snapped due to severe funding cuts. Funding for the 2025 appeal — $12bn — was the lowest in a decade, resulting in 25 million fewer people being reached compared to 2024.

Amidst this devastation, civilians endured blatant disregard for the laws of war, and more than 320 aid workers, the vast majority of them local staff, were killed. The consequences were immediate: hunger surged, health systems came under crushing strain, education collapsed, mine clearance stalled and families suffered blow after blow, with no shelter, no cash assistance and no protection services.

“This appeal sets out where we need to focus our collective energy first: life by life,” said UN Humanitarian Chief Tom Fletcher. “The Global Humanitarian Over­view 2026 is grounded in reform, evidence and efficiency. We are shifting power to local organisations, putting more money directly into the hands of those who need it, and, behind all, renewing and reimagining hu­­manitarian action with idealism, humility and hope.”

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2025