7 country operations of UN human rights office hit by US funding cuts: Spokesperson

GENEVA

The UN human rights office on Tuesday confirmed that seven of its country operations are directly affected by US funding cuts, leading to an urgent call for alternative financial support.

"We did receive stop work orders for ongoing agreements with USAID and the Department of State for seven of our country operations, and there has been an immediate impact," spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told a UN press briefing in Geneva.

Shamdasani added that the affected offices are in Equatorial Guinea, Iraq, Ukraine, Bangladesh, Colombia, Ethiopia, and Peru.

Giving the example of Iraq, she said the office is shutting down a program that provided support for torture victims and families of disappeared persons.

In Colombia, the spokesperson said that US funds represented more than 40% of the budget.

Recalling High Commissioner Volker Turk's remarks, she said this is "a time for more investment in human rights, not less investment."

The office has now entered contingency planning, reviewing its 2025 budget and urging states, foundations, and private donors to step up their contributions, she stressed.

Shamdasani also noted that in 2024, the US was the top donor of the human rights office, contributing $36 million --about 13.5% of its extra-budgetary income.

Aid cut severely affected Rohingya response

The funding cuts also extend to UNICEF operations in Bangladesh, where US grants have been terminated, significantly affecting services for the Rohingya refugee population, according to UNICEF representative in Bangladesh.

"The funds lost are equivalent to about a quarter of our Rohingya refugee response costs, as they were in 2024, and without that alternative funding, services for these children will be significantly scaled back, putting their survival, safety, and futures at risk," Rana Flowers said in response to Anadolu's question.

Critical programs, including safe water and sanitation, health access, and education are under threat, Flowers warned, and said: "Clinics will close, and immunizations will be disrupted. Education will be cut off, leaving hundreds of thousands without learning opportunities."

She further warned of grave consequences if alternative funding is not secured.

"If the support is withdrawn, we know that the most vulnerable -- the children -- are going to die, and we need to call on all donors. Now is not the time to turn away from Bangladesh," she said.

"Every donor matters but there's no substitute for the scale of support provided by the donor governments, and there's no replacement for the valuable partnership with the United States," she stressed.

She also said the program that UNICEF has for the skilled, trained capacity that detects and treats sick children will run out of resources in June 2025, and added: "After that, there is no guaranteed funding for the detection and treatment services."

"Unless additional resources are secured, only half of the children in need will have access to treatment this year, and that's going to leave about 7,000 children at risk with the expectation of a rise in morbidity and mortality," she said. "That's babies dying."