Approximately 54,750 women were waitlisted or denied assistance by NGOs working on women's issues in Ukraine, due to capacity constraints caused in part by U.S. funding cuts.

Date: 2/26

Region: Europe & Central Asia

Country: Ukraine

Topic: Gender Equality & Inclusion

Policy Lens: Security & Resilience

Entry Type: Human Impact

Additional Context: This information was collected in a survey of 108 women-led and women’s rights organizations in Ukraine conducted by the Gender in Humanitarian Action group, or GiHA.

This figure came from reports by 73 organizations of changing operational capacity. According to GiHA, 85% of organizations in Ukraine relied on foreign assistance for more than half of their program portfolio, totaling $27.4 million in 2025. Additional losses are expected by organizations in 2026. More than one-third of organizations reported reductions across multiple services such as gender-based violence prevention and response, protection services, advocacy and political participation, mental health support, and economic empowerment, among other humanitarian programming.

Devex Researcher Note: Gender equality work has been notably affected by global donor funding reductions. The U.N. projects losses in the sector at $2.83 billion per year worldwide due to government cuts and the closure of some women's rights initiatives. The U.S. has set forth a sweeping new set of restrictive funding policies, dramatically expanding the Mexico City Policy, which blocks U.S. federal funding to international nongovernmental organizations that provide or inform about abortion. The new rules surpass previous limits to include gender ideology and diversity, equity, and inclusion, along with expansion to a new cadre of recipients — including U.N. agencies. In Ukraine, 62% of organizations have reported declining donor interest in funding gender equality work.

Source: GiHA