Statement: A call on leaders to #ActForHumanity – the world is watching
UN Women statement for World Humanitarian Day, 19 August 2025
On this World Humanitarian Day, we honour every humanitarian who risks and—all too often—loses their life to help others. We honour the women leaders and local responders who stand on the frontlines, often facing double peril: targeted for the work they do, and for who they are. We pay tribute to those killed, and salute those who keep showing up in the face of danger.
This year’s call to #ActForHumanity is more urgent than ever. The humanitarian landscape is collapsing under escalating violence, dwindling resources, and broken promises of protection.
The past year marked a devastating chapter for humanitarian workers, with more lives lost than ever before and attacks surging significantly. These deaths are not accidents. They stem from systemic failures: impunity for those who break the rules of war, eroded respect for humanitarian principles, and a growing disregard for international humanitarian law.
The violence is compounded by unprecedented funding shortfalls. As at 12 August, only about 18 per cent of the Global Humanitarian Overview’s requirements have been met. Cuts to women responders are severe: a 2025 UN Women survey found that in 44 crisis settings, 72 per cent have laid off staff and over half have suspended programmes. This loss of capacity strips away essential services, increases violence against women, burdens them with heavier unpaid care work, and removes social protections that could prevent harm.
We cannot allow this to be normalized. We call on leaders to act, decisively, now to:
- Protect humanitarian workers, including women on the frontlines who face targeted violence and the civilians they serve.
- Fund the lifeline that sustains lives, ensuring resources reach women-led and local organizations that are often first to respond and last to leave.
- Guarantee the full participation and leadership of women in humanitarian decision-making, recognizing their essential role in effective, inclusive response.
Act now. The world is watching. #ActForHumanity.
