Local NGO leaders call on international relief agencies to stop competing for financing from UN country funds

February 04, 2026 / By: Ann Danaiya Usher

Leaders of humanitarian organisations in the Global South urge international actors to stop competing for financing from the UN country-based pooled funds in the wake of Save the Children’s decision to refrain from applying to the funds for support. Local organisations continue to be treated as subcontractors with no overhead, they say. Some international NGOs are mulling over whether to withdraw.

De-Joseph Kakisingi personal photo.jpg — De-Joseph Kakisingi, gynaecologist and and leader of the national NGO forum in the Democratic Republic of Congo, CONAFOHD, has over the past two years been arguing for international NGOs to leave the UN country-based pooled funds. (Personal photo)