Health Emergency

The United Nations allocated US$160 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) on Friday to support life-saving assistance in 12 of the world’s most underfunded humanitarian crises, spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. This allocation is part of a broader effort to assist 87 million people facing the most severe humanitarian crises this year.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that escalating violence in eastern DRC continues to displace and endanger civilians. This surge in conflict is unfolding against the backdrop of the largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded in the country, as well as other health and humanitarian emergencies nationwide.

According to new food security data released on Wednesday, millions of people across Somalia continue to face high levels of hunger, and acute malnutrition among children is set to worsen over the coming months. United Nations agencies and the Somali government are warning that funding shortages and flooding associated with the anticipated El Niño are expected to worsen the situation from October to December 2026.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that, as fighting in Yemen continues and the toll on civilians rises, relief efforts are struggling to keep up with the growing needs and supplies are running low. Although the UN and its partners are ramping up support for displaced families and those in need, the relief response is facing ongoing funding shortages and access limitations.

The deadly Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, DR Congo) continues to spread across the vast country, despite some success in containing it. Aid officials renewed their call for international support on Tuesday to help responders on the ground. While there has been progress in some places, aid agencies warn that cases continue to rise exponentially in other locations.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is warning that ongoing hostilities in Yemen are forcing people to flee their homes, causing civilian casualties and putting already strained humanitarian operations under increasing pressure. According to OCHA, around 125,000 people had been displaced by renewed fighting as of Monday.

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan expressed deep concern on Thursday following its latest visit to the country, emphasizing that renewed violence, political tensions, shrinking civic space, entrenched corruption, and persistent impunity continue to endanger civilians and the country's political transition. The Commission warned that the window to prevent further deterioration is narrowing.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that an escalation in fighting is devastating communities in Yemen that are already struggling to survive after more than a decade of conflict. According to humanitarian agencies, approximately 34,000 people have been displaced in the governorates of Taiz and Al-Hodeidah since Thursday, when hostilities escalated. Civilians are reportedly among those killed and injured as clashes intensify.

The United Nations is sounding the alarm over the rapidly escalating Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), warning that the virus is spreading at an unprecedented rate in a region already plagued by conflict, displacement, and acute hunger. The country's health authorities have reported 6,100 confirmed cases of Ebola and 2,950 related deaths, resulting in a case fatality ratio of 48 percent.

The global funding crisis is taking a growing toll on the most vulnerable children in Somalia, where hundreds of health and nutrition facilities have been forced to close, according to a warning issued on Friday by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Severe drought is compounding the emergency and threatening the survival of communities, as some 1.9 million children suffer from acute malnutrition.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned on Thursday that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is still spreading, with the national authorities having recorded over 5,200 confirmed cases and almost 2,500 deaths by Tuesday. Ituri Province in eastern DR Congo remains the epicenter of the outbreak, with Bas-Uélé now becoming the sixth affected province. This is now the second-largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded, and it is spreading faster than any previous outbreak.

United Nations relief chief Tom Fletcher told the UN Security Council on Thursday that the convergence of climate shocks and renewed regional tension threatens to deepen the humanitarian crisis in Yemen as hunger rises and health services crumble. Fletcher warned that the Yemeni people's enduring resilience should not be used to justify the international community's failure to address the collapsing humanitarian situation.

In a new alert on Tuesday, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said that one in three Afghans is now experiencing acute food insecurity, and the organization lacks the resources to contain the deepening crisis. The dire hunger crisis in Afghanistan affects 14 million people, including babies who are fed weak tea and a little bread by their despairing, dirt-poor parents.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that fighting in the highlands of South Kivu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to force people from their homes and disrupt their access to essential services. According to aid agencies, clashes in the Uvira, Fizi, and Mwenga territories have displaced more than 48,000 people since mid-July.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that the deadly Bundibugyo virus outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is continuing to expand. Rising numbers of cases and deaths are putting mounting pressure on health services and humanitarian efforts to respond.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on Tuesday that infections of the Bundibugyo species of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have reached record highs, and a majority of new cases are coming from "unknown chains of transmission." Modeling by WHO indicates that the scale of the outbreak could be "at least two to four times" the number of reported cases.

While needs are rising rapidly across the world, the United Nations is warning that humanitarian organizations providing life-saving services to women and girls are running out of money. A new UN Women report, published on Friday, reveals that at least one million women and girls have lost access to vital support since January 2025 — a figure which is believed to be much higher in reality.

The outbreak of the deadly Bundibugyo species of Ebola in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is expanding, while the push to accelerate testing and identify effective treatment options continues, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, health authorities report more than 1,560 confirmed Ebola cases across Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, with Ituri remaining the epicenter of the outbreak.

The deadly Ebola outbreak in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to spread, with a spike in child infections becoming increasingly likely in the coming days, according to a warning issued by United Nations agencies on Friday. Since the outbreak was confirmed less than a month ago, more than 670 cases and 130 deaths have been reported.

United Nations relief chief Tom Fletcher announced on Friday the allocation of up to US$60 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to step up the response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the wider region. The first tranche of $10 million will support affected and high-risk populations in the eastern provinces of Ituri and North Kivu, with a focus on health, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).