World Food Programme (WFP)

Rule Changes

Received $800 million from U.S. in June 2026; cutting Gaza food aid for lack of money; new executive director Luke Lindberg took office in late October 2026; Afghanistan funding at 12% of 2022 levels

The United States pledged $2 billion for UN humanitarian aid in December 2025, added $1.8 billion in May 2026 and made direct awards to UNICEF and the World Food Programme in June. Total UN commitments are nearly $5 billion, still about 70% below the $17 billion Washington gave each year before the freeze. Within hours of his January 2025 inauguration, Trump froze nearly all foreign assistance, dismantled USAID by July and warned UN agencies to 'adapt, shrink or die.'

Updated Nov 2

Money Moves

Halved West Bank food aid to 200,000 recipients in September 2026

The World Food Programme halved its West Bank food aid in September, cutting recipients from 400,000 to 200,000 because of a funding shortfall. Displaced families, including that of 75-year-old widow Fawza Awad in Tulkarem, lost payments that had bought food for two or three people.

Updated Oct 26

Money Moves

Cutting Gaza reach to 1.1 million and West Bank reach to 200,000, seeking $450 million to restore aid

The World Food Programme cut monthly food aid in Gaza from 1.6 million people to 1.1 million this month because donor money ran short. Rations are halved, hot meals fell from 250,000 to 150,000 a day, and the agency dropped 200,000 people in the West Bank.

Updated Oct 23

Force in Play

Cut monthly Gaza assistance from 1.6 million people to 1.1 million in October

Commercial trucks began entering Gaza again on October 19, after merchants said Hamas had withdrawn its demand for 10,000 shekels ($3,225) per truck. Israel's military body that runs the crossings said payments must now go through bank transfers, and that any merchant found to have paid Hamas would be barred from importing.

Updated Oct 22

Built World

Sending food and relief supplies to Gorkha flood victims

At least 108 people died in September flooding across northern India and Nepal. A flash flood hit Nepal's Gorkha district on October 11; Nepal's disaster authority says an avalanche of rock and ice triggered it, echoing the mountain collapse that unleashed August's deadly flood.

Updated Oct 19

Built World

As of September 2026: Operating cross-border food convoys into Darfur

Darfur's regional government formally reopened the Tina border crossing with Chad on September 25, 2026, restarting the fastest aid route into North Darfur. Sixty trucks carried food and medical supplies across in the week around the announcement.

Updated Sep 29

Force in Play

As of May 2026: Coordinating humanitarian response

Torrential rains driven by La Niña have killed more than 200 people across Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe since late December 2025. South Africa declared a national disaster on January 18, 2026, after floods killed at least 37 in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and other provinces, destroyed thousands of homes, and washed away roads and bridges.

Updated May 22

Force in Play

As of May 2026: Lead UN agency for food assistance in Sudan

Two of every five Sudanese now lack enough food. Three UN agencies said on May 15 that 19.5 million people across Sudan face crisis-level hunger after three years of war between the national army and a paramilitary force.

Updated May 15

Money Moves

As of May 2026: Implementing large-scale ration cuts due to funding shortfalls

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) cut its 2026 humanitarian appeal to roughly $33 billion in December 2025, down from the $47 billion requested for 2025. Governments had provided only about $15 billion in 2025 — the lowest level of support in a decade. Three weeks later, the United States pledged $2 billion to OCHA-managed funds, providing roughly two-thirds of the funding needed to reach 87 million people in the most catastrophic need.

Updated May 10