Afghanistan: Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan 2025, Response Overview (1 January - 31 May 2025)

From January to May 2025, humanitarian partners reached 10.2 million people with at least one form of assistance, including 1.7 million who received three different types of sectoral support. While this represents significant reach, 75 per cent (7.7 million people) received food assistance, highlighting the extent to which food assistance continues to drive overall response figures while also overshadowing the millions of people who will require multiple rounds of assistance throughout the year to ensure their needs are adequately met.

The response was supported by $379 million in new funding as of May 2025 (16 per cent of requirements) and carryover funds from 2024. However, $2.04 billion (84 per cent) of the original $2.42 billion requirement remained unfunded, covering only 23 per cent of the urgently prioritized HNRP requirement ($1.63 billion). In line with global agreements with OCHA, some agencies report funding updates to the Financial Tracking Service (FTS) in the second quarter, meaning that funding levels will be more comprehensively reflected in upcoming updates.

Given funding constraints, partners will prioritise more integrated assistance, guided by biannual gap analyses, improved inter-sectoral reach calculations, and greater transparency in reach data, including the disaggregation of food assistance by distribution round.

Amid sustained humanitarian needs and ongoing operational challenges, the ability of partners to stay and deliver life-saving assistance depends on sufficient and flexible funding, enabling financial systems, assurances for aid worker safety, and an environment that upholds principled humanitarian action. This includes ensuring women’s access to assistance and services, and enabling Afghan women humanitarian workers to participate safely, meaningfully, and fully in the response.