Meer documentenQuestions and answers on the Communication on Humanitarian Aid
Why was there a need for a new Communication on Humanitarian Aid?
Since the previous Communication on Humanitarian Action, published in 2021, the international humanitarian system has been shaken to its core, due to the outbreak of armed conflict in Europe, the disastrous humanitarian situation in Gaza, Ukraine or Sudan, and severe funding cuts affecting all aspects of humanitarian work.
According to the UN, 239 million people worldwide are in need of humanitarian assistance in 2026 – that is up from 31 million in 2006. The number of people forcibly displaced or seeking asylum has doubled over the past decade, reaching 117.3 million in 2025.
Not only are humanitarian needs reaching catastrophic levels, but adequate funding is also not available, thus forcing the humanitarian actors to drastically prioritise. Providing assistance has also become more difficult with aid workers being attacked, civilians trapped in war zones and international humanitarian law violated with alarming frequency.
In this context, the new Joint Communication sets out the EU's commitment to remain a trustworthy and reliable humanitarian partner, while adapting its way of working to maximise effectiveness and impact, and supporting the necessary changes that will make the international humanitarian system more resilient.
Will the new Communication result in practical changes in the way the EU works in humanitarian aid?
Yes. We are adapting to shifting realities, positioning the EU as a driver of reform. We will step up the protection of humanitarian work and international humanitarian law; improve the performance of our funding, and partner more broadly with a wider range of stakeholders, acknowledging the need for broader solutions.
What do you mean with ‘humanitarian diplomacy'? What is new about the strategic approach?
EU humanitarian diplomacy is the use of humanitarian, political, economic, security or diplomatic instruments by official EU representatives to engage decision-makers, parties to armed conflicts and their sponsors or influencers, to help prevent, mitigate and resolve humanitarian crises, improve parties' compliance with international humanitarian law and with the international humanitarian principles.
In practice, this includes EU advocacy and engagements in multilateral fora, diplomatic demarches, political dialogues, human rights dialogues, mediation and peacebuilding efforts, Common Security and Defence Policy Missions and Operations, supporting local-level engagement, and coordinating and joining forces with partners worldwide to achieve humanitarian objectives
When humanitarian access collapses, instability spreads beyond borders. When civilians feel abandoned, extremism finds fertile ground. Humanitarian diplomacy is not optional, it is a political and strategic necessity.
Humanitarian diplomacy means insisting on access, demanding accountability, defending international humanitarian law and keeping civilians at the centre.
Why reforming humanitarian supply chains?
The humanitarian supply chains account for an estimated 60–80% of the total humanitarian spending worldwide, from the procurement of the relief items to their final delivery.
Over time, humanitarian aid organisations have developed parallel supply chains which operate largely separately. This can lead to unnecessary duplication of efforts, higher costs and in some cases slower delivery. Against the current backdrop of growing humanitarian needs and shrinking resources, a collective shift is not only desirable, but necessary.
A more coordinated and collaborative approach - from procurement to last-mile delivery – is key to ensuring that aid reaches more people, faster and more reliably, including in the hardest-to-access areas.
In practice, this means:
- procuring, transporting and warehousing jointly across organisations, pooling resources and expertise to reduce costs, avoid duplication and deliver more for every euro spent;
- coordinating pre-positioning of stocks before crises hit, not after;
- sharing data and use of common logistics platforms across the sector;
- empowering and facilitating local actors to take a greater role;
- reducing the environmental impact of humanitarian operations.
How will the EUs engagement in fragile contexts be strengthened?
Fragility is the combination of exposure to risk and insufficient coping capacity of the state, system or communities to manage, absorb or mitigate those risks. The EU aims to address its root causes.
This cannot be done only by providing life-saving humanitarian aid, but by strengthening resilience, stability, peace and sustainable development.
This integrated approach means more systematic and stronger collaboration among the EU services, but also working more closely with Member States in a strong Team Europe approach.
In addition, it means strengthening our partnerships with a broader range of stakeholders, notably international financial institutions, the private sector, philanthropies, the UN and non-governmental partners.
This approach will increase the efficiency, impact and leverage of external policies in fragile situations.
Will this also result in increased funding for humanitarian aid?
The Communication does not in itself determine the level of humanitarian aid funding. Annual funding is decided by the Budgetary Authority (the European Parliament and the Council) through the annual budgetary procedure.
For the next Multiannual Financial Framework, discussions are ongoing. It will be for the Budgetary Authority to define the scale of ambition for EU humanitarian aid over the next seven years. The Commission's objective is to ensure that the EU remains a reliable and predictable humanitarian donor, able to provide principled, needs-based assistance wherever needs are greatest.
In 2026, the EU humanitarian aid budget started at around €1.9 billion, broadly in line with 2025. Following the mobilisation of €345 million in additional reserves, the current budget stands at around €2.3 billion.
Overall, the EU and its Member States remain the leading humanitarian donors globally, together providing around 34% of humanitarian funding worldwide in 2025.
However, implementing the actions set forward in this Joint Communication can clearly lead to significant cost-savings and budgetary efficiency – be it through the reform of humanitarian supply chains, localisation, the integrated approach to fragility or public-private partnerships.
For more information
Joint Communication on Humanitarian Aid
Joint Staff Working document: a strategic approach to EU's Humanitarian Diplomacy
Commission Staff Working document: Humanitarian Supply Chains
Joint Staff Working document: Integrated Approach to Fragility
