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With humanitarianism in crisis, choose principles over pragmatism.
The humanitarian system stands at a crossroads. With a significant proportion of global funding now suspended, we face a challenge that tests our principles, resolve, and our ability to deliver even basic life-saving services for people suffering from wars and disasters.
Humanitarian organisations, whether UN agencies, international or local NGOs, have a choice. We can focus on self-preservation: shielding budgets, protecting institutions, and prioritising proximity to power. Or we can reaffirm the fundamental commitment that brought us here: delivering principled, needs-based aid that supports communities and upholds human dignity.
This is not about funding cycles or policy debates. It is about lives hanging in the balance. The dismantling of humanitarian capacity and accountability threatens to leave millions without the support they urgently need to survive and recover with dignity.
In the first days of the stop work order, programmes in some of the world’s worst crises ground to a halt. Health programmes have been hard hit, with people unable to access life-saving medical treatments and care.
The humanitarian imperative is clear: all people have the right to receive and offer assistance. No human life holds greater value than another. Decisions about aid must be determined by communities themselves on the basis of need, not dictated by far removed political interests. But the capacity of local organizations to step up to the plate is under threat, many unable to withstand this period of financial uncertainty.
As we move into the first months of 2025, we must not let the urgency of our mission slip. Accountability to the people we serve cannot be sidelined or lost in the shuffle of shifting priorities or funding uncertainties. The systems established – systems better recognizing solidarity, empowerment, of local ownership – must be protected. If we allow these systems to unravel, we risk not only failing those we serve but also undermining the very progress we’ve fought so hard to achieve. Our collective responsibility is to ensure that the people affected by crises are firmly at the heart of humanitarian decisions, and that their voices guide our actions.
Uncertainty, chaos, and fear must not overwhelm. Instead, we must stand firm in solidarity, act with courage, and push for a system that remains rooted in its ultimate purpose: to aid, support, and uplift those affected by crises.
We call on:
● The U.S. administration to urgently reinstate humanitarian assistance
● Governmental and non-governmental funders around the world to demonstrate solidarity with people in crisis by increasing flexible, accountable assistance with community priorities at its centre
● Humanitarian actors, big and small, to work collectively to meet the most urgent needs even if that means relinquishing funding or power to those better placed to serve communities that are now hanging in the balance
The choice is not for tomorrow, it is for today, and requires solidarity between crisis-affected communities, aid workers and all those who support humanitarian assistance. If we fail, it is those most in need who will suffer the consequences.
The co-authors have written this in their personal capacity. They are members of the System Strengthening Initiative, a group dedicated to humanitarian system change and fostering collaboration across networks and organisations. This does not serve as a communication from our individual organisations or their wider membership.
● Christina Bennett, Start Network, CEO
● Juliet Parker, ALNAP, Director
● Kim Scriven, H2H Network, Executive Director
● Jamie Munn, ICVA, Executive Director
● Mary Ana McGlasson, Centre for Humanitarian Leadership, Director (Deakin University)
● Meg Sattler, Ground Truth Solutions, CEO
● Tanya Wood, CHS Alliance, Executive Director
● William Anderson, Sphere, Executive Director