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having regard to Articles 208 and 214 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU),

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having regard to Articles 3(5) and 21 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU),

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having regard to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols,

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having regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ratified by the EU and all of its Member States,

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having regard to UN Security Council Resolution 2730 (2024) of 24 May 2024 on protection of humanitarian personnel and UN and associated personnel in armed conflict,

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having regard to the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) of 31 October 2000 on women, peace, and security, and the nine subsequent related resolutions by the UN Security Council, setting out the Women, Peace and Security agenda,

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having regard to the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development held in Cairo, its Programme of Action and the outcomes of its review conferences,

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having regard to the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcomes of its review conferences,

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having regard to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),

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having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid (1),

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having regard to the Grand Bargain agreement signed on 23 May 2016, to the annual independent reports thereon, in particular the 2021 report, and to the Grand Bargain 2.0 framework and the annexes thereto presented at the Grand Bargain annual meeting from 15 to 17 June 2021, as well as to the renewed commitments made at the Grand Bargain annual meeting from 19 to 20 June 2023,

—

having regard to the report of the UN Secretary-General of 23 August 2016 on the outcome of the World Humanitarian Summit and the commitments made by the participants at that summit,

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having regard to the ‘humanitarian reset’ proposed by the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher in a message to the United Nations Inter-Agency Standing Committee on 10 March 2025  (2),

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having regard to the Commission communication of 10 March 2021 on the EU’s humanitarian action: new challenges, same principles (COM(2021)0110),

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having regard to the Commission’s EU Roadmap for Women’s Rights,

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having regard to the EU’s Action Plan on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in External Action (GAP III),

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having regard to the updated EU guidelines on promoting compliance with international humanitarian law (3),

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having regard to the Council conclusions of 10 December 2018 on Women, Peace and Security and the EU Strategic Approach to Women, Peace and Security (WPS),

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having regard to the Council conclusions of 20 May 2021 on the EU’s humanitarian action, of 22 May 2023 on addressing the humanitarian funding gap, of 7 May 2024 on protection in humanitarian settings, and of 24 June 2024 on the update of the EU Guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict,

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having regard to the Council conclusions of 16 December 2024 on stepping up Team Europe’s support to global food security and nutrition,

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having regard to the World Food Programme 2025 Global Outlook,

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having regard to the 2025 Global Humanitarian Overview of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),

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having regard to the 2025 UN Women report ‘At a breaking point: The impact of foreign aid cuts on women’s organizations in humanitarian crises worldwide’,

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having regard to the 2024 International Committee of the Red Cross report on international humanitarian law and the challenges of contemporary armed conflicts,

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having regard to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) States of Fragility 2025 report,

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having regard to the European Court of Auditors’ special report 15/2025 of 18 June 2025 on EU humanitarian aid under remote management,

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having regard to the Equal Measures 2030 report entitled ‘Findings from the 2024 SDG Gender Index: A gender equal future in crisis?’,

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having regard to the G7 foreign ministers’ statement of 13 May 2022 on strengthening anticipatory action in humanitarian assistance,

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having regard to the outcome document of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, also referred to as the ‘Sevilla Commitment’ (Compromiso de Sevilla),

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having regard to the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) 2023 guidance note entitled ‘Promoting equitable partnerships with local responders in humanitarian settings’,

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having regard to the Humanitarian Donors Declaration on climate and the environment of March 2022,

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having regard to the pledges on ‘strengthening compliance with international humanitarian law (IHL) through its promotion, dissemination and implementation’ and on ‘protecting humanitarian and medical personnel’ adopted by the EU and its Member States and their National Societies at the 34th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement,

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having regard to the pledge on ‘unblocking and facilitating humanitarian access: more political and diplomatic engagement and increased support to humanitarians’, adopted by the EU and its Member States at the 34th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement,

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having regard to its resolution of 7 May 2025 on a revamped long-term budget for the Union in a changing world (4),

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having regard to its resolution of 24 June 2021 on the situation of sexual and reproductive health and rights in the EU, in the frame of women’s health (5),

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having regard to its resolution of 29 November 2018 on the situation of women with disabilities (6),

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having regard to its resolutions on humanitarian aid, in particular those of 15 December 2021 on new orientations for the EU’s humanitarian action (7), and of 6 July 2022 on addressing food security in developing countries (8), and of 23 November 2023 on how to build an innovative humanitarian aid strategy: spotlight on current and forgotten crises (9),

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having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

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having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality,

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having regard to the report of the Committee on Development (A10-0257/2025),

A.

whereas the multilateral humanitarian system is facing unprecedented challenges due to a high number of people who require urgent humanitarian assistance and a growing number of fragile contexts, including increasing numbers of armed conflicts compared to 2023; whereas in 2025, an estimated 305 million people around the world will require urgent humanitarian assistance and protection (10); whereas polycrisis refers to a complex and interconnected set of crises occurring simultaneously (11);

B.

whereas over 319 million people are estimated to face acute food insecurity worldwide, with approximately 70 % of them living in fragile or conflict-affected settings (12), where about one in five people suffers from hunger; whereas international cooperation, in particular with partners who are in a position to provide substantial aid, including transatlantic cooperation, remains crucial in order to tackle these challenges, especially in the field of food security;

C.

whereas by 2030, over 90 % of worldwide poverty will be found in Africa; whereas the benefits of nutrition, health and education are crucial to get this population out of the poverty trap; whereas in 2025, the highest humanitarian needs are estimated to be in Eastern and Southern Africa, where 85 million people need humanitarian assistance; whereas the crisis in Sudan alone accounts for 35 % of those needs;

D.

whereas the situation in Afghanistan is putting even greater pressure on already stretched humanitarian resources and worsening the plight of millions, including women and girls, struggling to survive;

E.

whereas over 122 million people are forcibly displaced globally, as documented by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with nearly 60 % living in fragile or conflict-affected settings, and over 70 % of asylum seekers arriving in the EU originate from these settings (13);

F.

whereas the humanitarian system is facing a massive funding crisis; whereas in 2024 only 43 % of the USD 50 billion UN appeal for humanitarian aid was met; whereas the dismantling of US Agency for International Development (USAID) programmes and the reduction in foreign aid from other key donors, including several EU Member States, have further exacerbated the situation and led to a worrying decline in global funding for humanitarian, health, gender equality and climate initiatives; wheras only 13 % (14) of the funding required for the 2025 UN appeal for humanitarian aid to assist 188 million people in 72 countries was reached by July 2025; whereas due to USAID cuts more than 14 million people face the risk of death by 2030; whereas this also affects more than 4,5 million children under the age of five (15); whereas the funding cuts are deepening the hunger crisis when acute food insecurity is at an all-time high; whereas these cuts have a disproportionate impact on women, girls, persons with disabilities, and those living in rural and remote areas, exacerbating existing inequalities (16); whereas local and national women-led and women’s rights organisations are among the most severely impacted; whereas these cuts further endanger the safety and well-being of internally displaced people, refugees and vulnerable groups; whereas these cuts are having a devastating impact on global health – further increasing overall mortality, morbidity and disability due to an unequal access to disease treatment and prevention, basic services and goods, and the risk of infectious disease outbreaks, and pandemics –, and food security;

G.

whereas there are striking imbalances in funding between humanitarian appeals, reflecting the fact that more crises are being forgotten; whereas forgotten crises are defined as severe, protracted humanitarian crisis situations where affected populations are receiving no or insufficient international aid and where there is no political commitment to solve the crisis, due in part to a lack of media interest;

H.

whereas humanitarian aid under the current multiannual financial framework (MFF) has been inadequate, leading to routine use of the Emergency Aid Reserve; whereas the EU must call on other actors to step up their humanitarian aid efforts; whereas humanitarian aid should not only support, but also mobilise local communities and get them involved in relief efforts;

I.

whereas the role of the humanitarian-development-peace nexus is crucial in humanitarian settings because it fosters coordination, collaboration and consistency among the sectors to address the root causes of protracted crises in addition to providing immediate relief; whereas the EU and its Member States jointly contribute 42 % of global development aid; whereas the OECD projects a 9 to 17 % drop in official development assistance (ODA) in 2025 (17); whereas by 2027, the Commission aims to mobilise up to EUR 300 billion through the Global Gateway initiative in sustainable and inclusive investments; whereas fragile contexts need a special EU approach and strategy;

J.

whereas conflict, climate change and economic factors are the three main drivers of the increase in humanitarian needs, and are human-caused and reversible with concerted and joint efforts; whereas the number of recorded armed conflicts peaked in 2023; whereas the consequences of climate change and environmental degradation lead to increased instability and conflicts, climate-related hazards, natural disasters, resource scarcity including water and food insecurity, internal displacement and irregular migration, disproportionately affecting women and vulnerable groups;

K.

whereas there is an alarming increase in the denial of safe and unhindered humanitarian access to people in need in many contexts, including during conflict, natural disasters and disease outbreaks, both by government forces as well as in areas controlled by non-state armed actors, compounded by the rise in dangerous and corrosive tendencies in the interpretation and application of IHL and the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence; whereas the deliberate denial and weaponisation of humanitarian access to advance political and military agendas is in breach of obligations under IHL;

L.

whereas lack of respect for IHL is resulting in persistent and widespread violations of IHL and international human rights law, with deliberate attacks of civilians, destruction of essential infrastructure, such as schools and hospitals, targeting of humanitarian workers, widespread sexual violence and recruitment of children as combatants; whereas the number and influence of armed non-state actors in global conflicts is increasing and some of the deadliest attacks on civilians have been committed by these non-state armed groups; whereas there is an unprecedented number of attacks against humanitarian workers, civilian populations and civilian infrastructure, driven mostly by the conflicts in Gaza and Sudan (18);

M.

whereas, according to the UN, in 2023 more than 600 million women and girls lived within 50 kilometres of a conflict zone, which is more than 50 % higher than a decade ago;

N.

whereas conflict-related sexual violence overall has risen dramatically, with the UN recording 3 688 verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence in 2023, which was 50 % higher than the year before, and with women and girls accounting for 95 % of the verified cases, while 32 % of the victims were children (19);

O.

whereas in times of conflict and crisis, pre-existing gender inequalities are often exacerbated, resulting in women and girls being disproportionally affected, such as from displacement and gender-based violence, to exclusion from life-saving services and decision-making processes; whereas women, adolescent girls, persons with disabilities, indigenous persons, LGBTQI+ persons and older persons often have additional and intersecting vulnerabilities that must be considered; whereas the share of bilateral aid with gender equality objectives in the humanitarian sector has historically been low, and has decreased further over the last few years, stagnating at 17 % (20) in 2021-22; whereas women play a crucial role in humanitarian settings as first responders; whereas investing in gender equality saves lives in humanitarian settings; whereas there is evidence that gender-responsive humanitarian programming delivers high returns, namely USD 8 for every USD 1 invested (21), with challenges persisting with regard to prioritisation;

P.

whereas violence against women in all its forms (physical, sexual, psychological, economic or cyber) is a violation of human rights, an extreme form of discrimination against women and one of the main obstacles to achieving gender equality;

Q.

whereas anti-gender movements are increasingly instrumentalising humanitarian crises to push back against gender equality and to delegitimise women’s organisations, including in EU partner countries;

R.

whereas children constitute half of the population affected by crises and the violation of their rights is happening at alarming levels, compounded by a drastic decrease in funding for child-centred initiatives and programmes; whereas over 473 million children – more than one in six children globally – are now living in areas affected by conflict; whereas there has been an increase in the recruitment of child soldiers; whereas children are more likely than adults to be killed or maimed, recruited by armed groups and sexually violated; whereas more than 52 million children in conflict-affected countries are estimated to be out of school (22);

S.

whereas churches and religious organisations, thanks to the trust they enjoy within communities, their ability to mobilise volunteers and their frequent presence in hard-to-reach areas, provide unique added value to crisis response; whereas their long-term commitment and holistic approach to support (combining material and psychosocial assistance) are crucial for building resilience and lasting peace;

1.

Welcomes the Commission’s commitment to humanitarian funding, with the EU and its Member States remaining the global leading donor in humanitarian needs-based assistance; insists on the obligation and responsibility for all states and for parties to a conflict to respect and ensure respect for IHL and international human rights law, on the need to prioritise the protection of civilians (PoC) and for these to remain an essential objective of the EU’s external action, including its humanitarian aid; calls on the EU to continue reinforcing the centrality of the non-negotiable humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence – which are increasingly under strain – and the promotion of IHL by applying a principled and needs-based humanitarian approach, refraining from partnerships that would undermine these principles; recalls that, according to Article 3(5) TEU, the Union shall promote the protection of human rights as well as contribute to the strict observance and the development of international law, including respect for the principles of the UN Charter, and will uphold gender equality as one of its core principles, in line with Article 2 TEU, in view of the current de-prioritisation of humanitarian aid, especially for women and girls; stresses the importance of promoting universal access to sexual and reproductive health services as part of the EU’s humanitarian action and of the EU’s commitment to ensuring access to reproductive and maternal healthcare services;

2.

Is alarmed by the increase in IHL violations in recent years – some of which have been reported as strategic methods of warfare; deplores the shrinking of the humanitarian space and the erosion of respect for IHL and the humanitarian principles, which presents significant obstacles to the provision of life-saving assistance in several conflict-affected settings; strongly condemns the alarming increase in attacks against civilian populations and the infrastructure necessary for their survival, grave violations against children, and attacks against humanitarian aid workers; denounces the blatant disregard of the protection of medical facilities with attacks against hospitals marking almost every conflict, in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2286 (2016) of 3 May 2016 on protection of the wounded and sick, medical personnel and humanitarian personnel in armed conflict; calls for the perpetrators responsible of such systematic attacks to be held accountable, and calls on the EU to consider sanctions against state or non-state actors that deliberately obstruct humanitarian access;

3.

Calls on the Commission and the Member States to strengthen actions to prevent IHL violations and to address gaps in monitoring IHL violations through impartial and independent data collection and more effective, evidence-based advocacy in order to hold perpetrators accountable; calls on the Commission to support mechanisms to monitor and report on humanitarian access challenges in conflict-affected settings;

4.

Welcomes the adoption of UN Security Council resolution 2730 (2024), on protection of humanitarian personnel and UN and associated personnel in armed conflict; underlines the obligation under IHL to respect and protect humanitarian personnel, as well as the importance of supporting independent, neutral and impartial humanitarian action by preserving the humanitarian space from direct attacks, unintended impacts of counter-terrorism policies and sanction regimes, politicisation as well as misleading narratives;

5.

Calls for concrete measures to ensure the effective implementation of safety and security protections for humanitarian workers, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2730 (2024), including the establishment of investigations, transparency, and impartial inquiries into violations of IHL; emphasises the need to take into account the greater vulnerability of local staff, who face increased risks to their safety and security, and to ensure their specific protection; calls on the Commission to support safety and security measures for the protection of humanitarian workers, and to demand accountability for attacks on them; reiterates the importance of rapid response mechanisms that offer immediate financial, legal and psychosocial assistance to humanitarian workers facing arrest, intimidation, or other security incidents, drawing on models such as the ‘Protect Aid Workers’ initiative;

6.

Expresses concern over the growing threats, harassment and criminalisation of human rights defenders and humanitarian volunteers in conflict and crisis settings; calls for the EU to include their protection as a priority in its humanitarian engagement; deplores the increasing attempts to criminalise humanitarian assistance without legitimate grounds for concern, especially life-saving interventions to people on the move fleeing from conflict, violence, persecution or poverty; calls for the adoption of a protective legal framework to address the criminalisation of aid, combat impunity, and include humanitarian exemptions in sanction regimes, as well as measures to prevent the criminalisation of humanitarian workers through anti-terrorism laws;

7.

Confirms its support for multilateralism with the UN at its core; underlines that the EU’s operations must be coordinated and consistent with international bodies, and calls on the Commission to continue its critical support to various UN entities in the humanitarian field, with the goal of up holding the humanitarian principles and IHL; reaffirms the obligation to respect and facilitate the mandates of UN entities, and strongly condemns any attempt to obstruct, restrict, or undermine the ability of UN agencies to effectively perform their humanitarian duties;

8.

Stresses the need to urgently address the unprecedented humanitarian crises in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), both among the most severe in the world today, with one third of the population in dire need of humanitarian assistance in Sudan and alarming levels of food insecurity and famine conditions confirmed in many parts of the country, similarly in the DRC, where 21 million people require humanitarian aid; calls on all parties to the conflict to ensure safe and unhindered humanitarian access in accordance with the humanitarian principles and to respect and protect humanitarian personnel; further calls for the EU and its Member States to increase humanitarian aid to Sudan and the DRC, and their neighbouring countries, and especially fund support for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, local resilience and protection programmes, and programmes promoting women’s and children’s rights and gender equality;

9.

Stresses that humanitarian aid, and therefore hunger, must never be politicised or weaponised and should reach civilians in need without obstruction or manipulation, in full compliance with IHL; reiterates that distribution sites, civilians, humanitarian workers and medical staff must be protected and must not become targets of military action; expresses outrage at the killing of 508 humanitarian workers in Gaza, as well as the repeated attacks on hospitals and humanitarian convoys; strongly opposes any aid distribution system in Gaza that is incompatible with the humanitarian principles; deplores the fact that this distribution scheme has resulted in the killing of more than a thousand Palestinians seeking aid; calls for an international response and investigation to ensure accountability for possible violations of international law which have occurred at Gaza Humanitarian Foundation-managed sites;

10.

Demands the unimpeded and large-scale provision of humanitarian assistance, under the coordination of the UN and in line with thehumanitarian principles; calls for the opening of all relevant border crossings, recalling that the denial of access to life-saving humanitarian aid is collective punishment, constituting a war crime; underlines the urgent need for all international humanitarian bodies, and in particular those that are part of the UN network, in line with Article 214 TFEU, to have full, rapid, safe and unhindered access to and throughout the entire Gaza Strip; stresses the central role the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) plays in providing humanitarian aid to Palestinian refugees and deplores the attempts to delegitimise it; calls for the mandate and funding of UNRWA to be reinstated in full, with strong oversight and accountability, by securing long-term, sustainable, multiannual and predictable funding for a reformed UNRWA to deliver vital services to Palestinian refugees, and preventing further humanitarian crises;

11.

Calls also for EU humanitarian assistance for the civilian population affected by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine to be maintained and stepped up, with a particular focus on the needs of internally displaced persons, refugees, elderly people and children, including victims of forced deportation to the Russian Federation and occupied territories;

12.

Highlights, in particular, the situation in Afghanistan, which is facing a severe and complex humanitarian crisis, with over 23,7 million people in need of assistance; notes that the situation is likely to deteriorate further owing to the expulsion of refugees from Pakistan and Iran and ongoing regional instability; welcomes the EU’s pledge of EUR 266 million in support, and calls for targeted local actions to assist women and girls;

13.

Reiterates its call on the Commission to develop an EU humanitarian diplomacy strategy, together with the Member States and the European External Action Service (EEAS), and the EU Special Representatives (EUSRs), in consultation with humanitarian actors, so as to boost efforts and ensure a more systematic and coordinated approach to humanitarian diplomacy, while adapting to ever-changing circumstances, using all available tools by leveraging the EU’s political and economic weight through political dialogue, and trade and aid relations, in order to secure humanitarian access, protect humanitarian workers and safeguard humanitarian space in armed conflicts, including negotiating the cessation of hostilities, humanitarian pauses, and safe passages for civilians and relief items in active conflicts; encourages the Commission, together with the Member States, the EEAS and EUSRs to ensure that high-level humanitarian diplomacy is systematically informed by the operational experiences of humanitarian actors, who should be consulted on a regular basis;

14.

Calls on the Commission to strengthen actions to prevent IHL violations and to address gaps in monitoring IHL violations through data collection and more effective, evidence-based advocacy;

15.

Stresses the need for independent humanitarian access to all migration-related facilities, including detention centres, hotspots, and informal border zones, where women and LGBTIQ+ persons face heightened risks of violence, exploitation and denial of essential services, including sexual and reproductive healthcare; calls for transparent monitoring and accountability mechanisms in such settings;

16.

Welcomes the suggested increase in humanitarian funding to EUR 25 billion for a Global Europe Instrument, and calls for a significant increase in the level of humanitarian funding in the next MFF and for ensured funding that is adequate, predictable and sustained, while underlining that flexibility for humanitarian aid should be ring-fenced, especially in the light of the growing gap between humanitarian needs and funding, but also to foster the EU’s interest in promoting global peace, stability and its international credibility as a principled humanitarian actor and reliable donor; strongly recommends that all EU institutions and the Member States work to foster international cooperation in order to jointly tackle global humanitarian challenges, especially global food insecurity;

17.

Calls on the Commission to maintain separate budget lines and instruments for humanitarian aid in order to respect the principles of neutrality, independence and impartiality; opposes the suggested merger of the EU Humanitarian Aid Instrument with the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe in the next MFF, and stresses the need to ensure that the emergency aid reserve has the capacity to respond when needed, to both EU internal and external needs;

18.

Asks the Commission to ensure that increased flexibility in the next MFF works to the advantage of EU humanitarian action, with increased transparency, and that it does not come at the expense of its neutrality, impact, credibility and predictability; recalls that transparency is key to ensuring that the next MFF is protected against misuse, fraud and breaches of the principles of the rule of law and the Union’s values, and to ensure that humanitarian and development aid financed by the Union reaches civilian populations in need; calls on the Commission to step up its monitoring mechanisms, and to provide for the rigorous selection of local partners, strict monitoring of the use of funds, and enhanced cooperation with Member States and international actors, with a view to preventing the risk of diversion or abuse; calls for stronger mechanisms of democratic oversight regarding the allocation and use of EU humanitarian funding, taking into account recommendations of civil society organisations in the monitoring and evaluation of EU-funded humanitarian operations;

19.

Reaffirms that the EU’s credibility as a global humanitarian actor rests on maintaining its committed, principled, sustained and inclusive engagement in regions affected by humanitarian crises, including in fragile settings and forgotten crises; reiterates that humanitarian aid must not be subordinated to geopolitical, migratory control or security objectives, and warns against instrumentalising humanitarian action to serve the external policy goals of the EU or its Member States;

20.

Reiterates its call on the Commission to develop a more harmonised approach to forgotten crises, and to report on its commitment to allocate 15 % of its initial annual humanitarian budget to forgotten crises and to prevent the transfer of resources from already underfunded crises; calls on the Council to better coordinate the Member States’ attention to and support for these crises;

21.

Highlights the special challenges faced by children and persons with disabilities and their families in terms of accessing humanitarian aid; underlines that only a fraction of ODA (12 %) currently targets children compared to their significant representation in the population of ODA-receiving countries, even though investing in children – and not just individual sectoral priorities – fosters lasting improvements to their living standards, along with their whole communities; emphasises the importance of prioritising child-specific needs, particularly education and child protection, in all phases of humanitarian response, including preparedness, emergency relief, and recovery; underlines that safeguarding children’s rights and well-being is essential for long-term resilience and sustainable development; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure dedicated funding, programming, and coordination mechanisms to address the specific needs of children in humanitarian settings;

22.

Stresses the need for public funding to remain a primary resource for humanitarian aid, in the light of the responsibility of states to ensure adequate and sustained funding, while acknowledging that public funding alone will not suffice to close the humanitarian funding gap and underlining that new sources of financing, including from the private sector, have to be taken into account; encourages the Commission and the Member States, therefore, to expand the resource base by supporting the development of innovative approaches and partnerships to fill the humanitarian funding gap in cooperation with international financial institutions, multilateral development banks, the private sector – provided that any private engagement complies with the humanitarian principles and full transparency – and the scientific community, to complement international public humanitarian assistance and close the global humanitarian funding gap; calls on the Commission and the Member States to explore progressive and sustainable financing mechanisms for humanitarian aid; emphasises the need for cooperation with emerging donor countries with a view to increasing their contribution to humanitarian aid;

23.

Welcomes the Humanitarian Reset launched by the UN, and stresses that this must be an opportunity to strengthen the humanitarian principles and a needs-based and people-centred system, and not just be driven by cost-cutting; underlines that equally important to achieving more efficiency and effectiveness is ensuring accountability for delivery, and that critical sectors, such as the protection mandates and gender-based violence measures, remain at the core as a lifesaving sector;

24.

Welcomes the Commission’s significant efforts to make humanitarian supply chains more effective and efficient, considering that they account for nearly 70 % of the humanitarian costs, making it a critical focus area when addressing the growing funding gap; encourages the Commission to continue to develop and support a strategic approach to supply chains;

25.

Calls on the Member States to deliver on their collective commitment to provide at least 0,7 % of gross national income (GNI) as ODA, to meet the ODA target of 0,2 % of GNI to Least Developed Countries by 2030, and to devote 10 % of their ODA to humanitarian action; calls on the Commission to ensure that humanitarian aid adequately addresses the needs of women and girls as a strategic investment with long-term positive impacts for all, while regretting that women’s rights organisations continue to be systematically underfunded, receiving less than 1 % of global ODA (23);

26.

Expresses its concern about the possible downsizing of EU delegations, including in third countries where significant humanitarian assistance is being provided; considers it essential, to the contrary, to strengthen these structures in the most critical countries;

27.

Highlights that the diversity of fragile contexts requires tailored approaches and specific financial instruments that foster concerted action among humanitarian, development and peace actors, while respecting the distinct mandate of principled humanitarian action, with a particular focus on engaging with and empowering local actors, both in decision-making processes and in the implementation of programmes; calls on the Commission and the Member States to maintain and intensify engagement in fragile, and conflict-affected settings;

28.

Calls on the Commission to adopt the communication on humanitarian aid as envisaged in its 2026 Commission Work Programme with a focus on an ambitious, people-centred and integrated approach to fragility, and the mechanisms to implement it, and to consult Parliament on the preparation and implementation of this strategy; welcomes the Commission’s communicated intention to prepare an integrated strategy to address fragility and conflict; highlights the importance of developing such a strategy with appropriately adapted, context-specific funding that addresses the interconnected challenges of peace, development, climate action, and humanitarian needs, including by engaging more with the local private sector, with full respect for the humanitarian principles; in view of this strategy, calls on the Commission to take into account the gender dimension;

29.

Calls on the Commission to make sure that countries are not caught up in endless cycles of humanitarian aid but can rather move to sustainable development, so as to strengthen local communities and prevent dependence on external supplies, through funding of essential services such as education, health and key infrastructure, including and beyond Global Gateway, which has the potential to be able to advance a range of interconnected SDGs, by leveraging multiple sources of funding, including private sector investments, and respecting social and environmental standards that could lead to accelerated growth, the creation of decent jobs, the reduction of poverty and income inequality, ensuring a more resilient and inclusive development in which no one is left behind; calls on the Commission to make use of EU cooperation instruments for local development plans through specific, targeted projects that have already been tried and tested by Member States;

30.

Recalls that climate change acts as one of the main drivers of conflict, drought, famine and migration; stresses that sea level rise may pose an existential threat to Small Island Development States, which are among the world’s countries most vulnerable to climate change;

31.

Calls on the EU to advance in the implementation of the triple nexus to address the key causes of crises and to support resilience-building, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected settings by supporting local organisations, including youth and women-led organisations, faith-based organisations, which play a key role in responding to humanitarian crises, and ensuring their full, equal and meaningful participation in the humanitarian programme cycle and in decision-making spaces at all levels;

32.

Calls on the Commission to deliver on its commitment to channel at least 25 % of its humanitarian funding to local actors by 2027, including through the use of country-based pooled funds and other funding mechanisms that prioritise local actors, as well as explore how to provide grants directly to local organisations, and help strengthen their capacities to meet regulatory, transparency and accountability requirements; calls on the EU to prioritise funding for local organisations delivering assistance to youth, women, people with disabilities, LGBTQI+ populations and other vulnerable groups;

33.

Calls on the Commission to prioritise in the next MFF multi-year funding for conflict prevention and peacebuilding in order to enforce linkages between humanitarian and crisis response mechanisms and longer term peacebuilding and development programming; stresses the importance of strengthening coordination mechanisms at field level across the EU’s humanitarian, development and peacebuilding actions to ensure joined-up and coherent outcomes, including through the Team Europe approach; underlines the importance of the EU-UN partnership in strengthening the humanitarian, development and peace nexus, with special attention being paid to girls and young women, people with disabilities, children and the older persons in vulnerable situations and stresses the importance of EU funding for the UN system; considers that structural inequalities continue to influence the power dynamics of humanitarian interventions, access to funding, and participation in decision-making; calls for a more inclusive, equitable and rights-based approach to EU humanitarian policy, with greater leadership from local and historically marginalised actors;

34.

Notes that anticipatory action in crisis-prone settings in advance of humanitarian crises is an efficient way of preventing or mitigating future humanitarian needs, as well as supporting communities’ ability to absorb and adapt to shocks and to build their resilience; encourages the Commission and the Member States to ensure that investments in prevention, anticipatory action and disaster preparedness are preserved to mitigate the impact of crises on populations and systems;

35.

Insists on the need for an evidence-based approach to anticipatory action, particularly in fragile and climate-vulnerable settings, to increase the availability of quality data and risk analysis in order to improve early warning systems and integrate risk forecasting into humanitarian planning;

36.

Encourages the Member States to significantly scale up their investment in locally-led and integrated anticipatory action, such as investments in early-warning systems, risk analysis and community resilience, and an increase in the share of climate funds dedicated to enhancing resilience and adaptation in the most disaster-prone countries and regions, stressing the importance of engaging a diverse group of actors, including civil society organisations and local-level networks in anticipatory actions, including forecast-based finance, and disaster preparedness and risk management, especially in fragile and climate-vulnerable settings;

37.

Welcomes the progress made in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) and the Women, Peace and Security agenda, which is an essential tool in ensuring that the rights of women and girls are observed at all times; notes that 25 years after its adoption, vast implementation gaps remain, with women still marginalised in peace processes and disproportionally impacted by conflict and crisis, including through widespread gender-based violence, requiring increased political and financial support to the agenda from the EU, as a catalyst for and investment in long-lasting and sustainable peace and development; calls on the Commission and the EEAS to continue making the promotion of gender equality and women’s rights and empowerment, including implementation of SDG 5, a priority throughout all of the EU’s external action; calls on the EU and the Member States to prioritise the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda;

38.

Calls on all parties to armed conflicts to take measures to promote the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls and protect them from all forms of conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence, notably rape, recognising that such violence often intensifies during conflicts and may be being used systematically as a weapon of war; underlines the deep connection between armed conflicts and humanitarian and climate crises, and the increase of irregular migration, human trafficking, and the risk of exploitation, which disproportionately affect women and girls; underlines the importance of the active, full, equal and meaningful participation of women in all stages of a peace process, including in ceasefire negotiations, mediation efforts, prevention and resolution of armed conflicts, peacebuilding, and post-conflict reconstruction; calls on the Commission, the EEAS, and the Member States to enhance efforts to take into account the specific needs and contributions of women and girls in strategies for conflict prevention, mediation, and peacebuilding;

39.

Underlines that women in humanitarian contexts should be recognised not merely as victims, but as agents of change who actively drive positive transformation and shape their own destinies; highlights the crucial role played by women as frontline responders and community leaders and by women-led organisations in humanitarian settings, in preparedness, response, and recovery efforts, providing life-saving services, such as shelter, sexual and reproductive health services, gender-based violence services, cash assistance, trusted community-based protection, and which undertake advocacy for the rights and needs of women, girls, and marginalised populations, as well as drive peacebuilding and development work in their communities, while only receiving 0,3 % of bilateral aid in fragile states;

40.

Regrets that local women-led organisations are among the hardest hit by the recent cuts to foreign aid, with half of them at risk of being shut down and encourages better engagement with them in humanitarian programming (24); calls on the Commission to allocate specific, sustainable, flexible, multiannual funding, to maintain existing partnerships, to simplify access to funds and to expand its support for local women-led organisations in humanitarian settings, to ensure a more effective, inclusive and accountable system, to achieve this by increasing its funding for local women-led organisations, strengthening tracking and accountability for humanitarian funding to local, women-led organisations, adapting existing funding mechanisms and processes to better fit their needs and capacities, as well as increasing the levels of direct multi-year funding made available to them; notes with regret that almost half (47 %) of women-led and women’s organisations surveyed expect to shut down within six months if current funding levels persist, while more than a third (35 %) remain trapped in uncertainty, unable to plan or sustain their work, and only 18 % report that they anticipate being able to remain operational for more than a year (25); calls on the Commission and the Member States to provide 5 % of their aid in fragile contexts to women-led and women’s rights organisations through flexible and long-term funding, including by committing at least 5 % of their ODA funding to supporting those organisations within the next MFF;

41.

Encourages the Commission, the EEAS and the Member States to promote gender-responsive approaches in humanitarian interventions and to increase their support for women’s participation in humanitarian decision-making processes, supporting the creation of conditions for women to take on leadership roles in crisis settings, and ensuring that their perspectives and needs are prioritised in the design and delivery of aid, in line with the objectives of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000); calls on the Commission to apply an inclusive, intersectional, and gender-responsive approach in all humanitarian planning, taking into account the specific needs and rights of women, girls, persons with disabilities, LGBTQI+ people and other marginalised groups; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure the meaningful participation of these groups in the design, implementation and evaluation of humanitarian aid programmes; considers it necessary to prioritise persons with disabilities in EU-funded humanitarian aid, addressing in particular the needs and priorities of women and children living with disabilities, including by providing funding to local organisations and networks of women and girls with disabilities, who are often best placed to respond to needs, but most impacted by funding cuts;

42.

Calls on the Commission to ensure that gender equality remains prioritised when reforming and restructuring the humanitarian system as part of the UN-led Humanitarian Reset, safeguarding funding and critical mechanisms, such as retaining a dedicated cluster within the humanitarian system that includes specialised action on gender-based violence, gender equality, and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse, as critical life-saving services; calls on the Commission to ensure the systematic implementation of rigorous gender analysis, gender-disaggregated data collection, gender-responsive budgeting and gender impact assessments, as well as the development of dedicated gender expertise in the Commission, to support such roles in partner organisations, and to continue strengthening the use of the EU Gender-Age Marker; welcomes the growing number and formalisation of gender focal persons (GFPs), with 99 % of EU delegations and 87 % of headquarters services now having GFPs;

43.

Reiterates the need for appropriate and timely sexual and reproductive health services to be prioritised and made available in all humanitarian responses, including through the implementation of the Minimum Initial Service Package for reproductive health in emergencies and transition to comprehensive services as the situation allows;

44.

Reiterates its call for the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) and its subsequent resolutions by the EU and its Member States; in this regard welcomes the progress made on the EU Action Plan on WPS and GAP III, and stresses the importance of the Commission’s presenting a GAP IV and the need for adequate resources for its implementation; regrets that since the launch of the GAP III only 3,8 % of all gender-responsive/targeted actions have gender equality as a principal objective; calls on the Commission to ensure that 85 % of all new external actions incorporate gender as a significant or principal objective and that 20 % of ODA in each country is allocated to programmes with gender equality as one of their principal objectives;

45.

Expresses serious concern about the growing influence of ultra-conservative, anti-gender and religious fundamentalist movements – both within and outside the EU – that aim to undermine the fundamental rights of women and girls, including in humanitarian settings; stresses that such movements often spread disinformation, stigmatise sexual and reproductive health services, and weaken the protection of women against gender-based violence; calls on the Commission, the EEAS, and the Member States to ensure that EU-funded humanitarian programmes remain firmly grounded in international human rights standards and gender equality, and to actively support civil society organisations targeted by anti-rights actors;

46.

Warns against institutional violence and negligence by humanitarian actors, including gender-blind programming, unsafe environments for women and LGBTQI+ people, and a lack of accountability for abuses; calls for binding gender-sensitivity standards, comprehensive reporting systems and zero-tolerance policies across all humanitarian operations funded by the EU;

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47.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the European External Action Service.