GENEVA, Switzerland: At least one million women and girls have lost access to life-saving support in the past year because of cuts in global aid, according to a new United Nations report released on July 10.

The report by UN Women found that nearly nine out of ten women's organizations can no longer meet needs on the ground, even though demand has increased sharply since January 2025. This follows the biggest drop in aid funding ever recorded.

The Trump administration reduced billions of dollars in foreign aid this year. Other major international donors have also cut their budgets due to financial pressure and higher defense spending. The United States had previously been the world's largest aid donor.

Around 120 million women and girls worldwide now need humanitarian help and protection. The report said that 40 percent of the 855 women's organizations surveyed in countries such as Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti could shut down temporarily or permanently within the next year because of a lack of funding.

Most organizations said they can no longer meet current needs. About 60 percent said they are helping fewer women and girls than before January 2025, even though demand for their services has increased.

The report warned that these cuts are creating serious gaps in aid, as these organizations are often the only ones able to reach women and girls in need.

Sofia Calltorp, UN Women's Chief of Humanitarian Action, said that every reduction in funding for women's organizations meant less support for survivors of sexual violence, displaced mothers, girls forced out of school, and vulnerable communities trying to survive.

About 65 percent of women-led organizations said their staff is working without pay to keep services running. Half said they have introduced waiting lists or are turning people away. More than three-quarters said they have reduced staff roles.

The report also said that disruptions to basic medical care could put thousands of survivors of Venezuela's deadly earthquakes at risk.

As cases of conflict-related sexual violence doubled last year, 62 percent of organizations said safe spaces have been reduced or are no longer available because of funding cuts. There has also been a drop in services that manage cases of gender-based violence.

UN Women said these funding cuts are part of a wider backlash against gender equality, with one in five organizations halting work supporting women's leadership and equality.