In 2025, the global humanitarian aid landscape underwent a dramatic shift as major donors slashed budgets, leaving vulnerable regions like the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) dangerously exposed. The DRC, grappling with a major Ebola outbreak that has caused over 220 suspected deaths and more than 900 cases according to the World Health Organization, exemplifies the consequences of these cuts. The outbreak, declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern in May, is straining a health system already weakened by conflict and years of underinvestment.
“This outbreak is hitting a country already stretched to breaking point,” said Dr. Manenji Mangundu, Oxfam Country Director in the DRC. “Ongoing conflict and years of aid cuts have deepened a humanitarian crisis of staggering scale: one in four people are going hungry. Those same aid cuts left DRC effectively exposed to Ebola, weakening the surveillance systems that should have detected this outbreak weeks earlier.”
The International Rescue Committee echoed these concerns. Heather Reoch Kerr, IRC’s Country Director for DRC, warned that funding cuts have left health facilities without adequate protective equipment or surveillance capacity. “Many facilities in affected areas are operating without basic protective supplies,” she said.
Who Cut the Most?
According to the OECD, Official Development Assistance (ODA) from the 33 member countries of the Development Assistance Committee fell from $229 billion (€197 billion) in 2023 to $215 billion (€185 billion) in 2024, and then to $165 billion (€142 billion) in 2025—the first drop after five years of growth. Five countries accounted for 95.7% of the total decline: the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan, and France. The US alone was responsible for three-quarters of the drop, with its assistance falling by 56.9% compared to 2024—the largest reduction in volume by any provider in any year on record.
Even after these cuts, the same five donors still dominated total aid flows, but their reduced budgets significantly lowered overall resources for low- and middle-income countries. The United Nations reports that 239 million people need urgent humanitarian assistance in 2026, following a year marked by severe cuts and a record number of deadly attacks against aid workers.
Who Leads Now?
In terms of share of Gross National Income (GNI), a different group of countries now leads. Norway, Luxembourg, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands contribute the highest percentages of their national income to foreign aid. These northern European nations have maintained or even increased their relative generosity, even as absolute volumes fell elsewhere.
The European Union and its 27 member states remain the world’s largest humanitarian donor collectively, accounting for 40% of global humanitarian assistance in 2025. The EU’s long-term budget for 2021–2027 includes a dedicated line for humanitarian aid, with €11.57 billion allocated over seven years—around €1.65 billion annually. This institutional commitment provides a degree of stability, though individual member state cuts have reduced overall EU contributions.
For context, the broader European aid landscape is also shaped by other developments. For instance, European prison overcrowding has worsened in nine countries, reflecting systemic pressures that also affect social spending. Meanwhile, a Paris concert raised funds for Lebanon’s humanitarian crisis, showing that civil society efforts continue even as official budgets shrink.
The cuts have real-world consequences. In the DRC, the Ebola outbreak is a stark reminder that underinvestment in health systems can have deadly results. As the WHO and aid agencies scramble to contain the virus, the question remains whether the world’s wealthiest nations will reverse course—or whether a new, more fragmented aid architecture is here to stay.
