By Boluwatife Oshadiya | March 12, 2026
Key Points
- UN emergency relief chief says the Middle East conflict is costing around $1 billion per day
- A $23 billion humanitarian appeal remains about two-thirds underfunded
- Closure of the Strait of Hormuz is raising global food, energy, and fertilizer costs
Main Story
The United Nations’ top humanitarian official has warned that the escalating war in the Middle East is costing approximately $1 billion every day, diverting resources at a time when global humanitarian needs are surging.
Speaking in Geneva on Wednesday, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said the financial and human costs of the conflict were becoming unsustainable while international aid funding continues to fall short.
“We’re seeing the consequences spread faster than we can respond,” Fletcher told reporters. “This is a moment of grave peril.”
The UN launched a $23 billion humanitarian appeal in December aimed at assisting 87 million of the world’s most vulnerable people, but Fletcher said the initiative remains around two-thirds underfunded.
According to the UN official, the funding gap currently stands at more than $14 billion, leaving critical relief programmes at risk.
“We still need over $14 billion now to deliver this plan, and this is at a time when conflict in the Middle East is costing one billion dollars a day,” Fletcher said. “Even just one billion dollars would allow us to save millions of lives.”
Humanitarian agencies are also increasingly concerned about the economic ripple effects of the conflict, particularly after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz on March 2.
The strategic maritime corridor handles roughly 20 percent of global oil shipments, meaning disruptions can quickly affect global energy markets and supply chains.
The Issues
Aid organisations warn that global humanitarian systems are already stretched by overlapping crises across multiple regions. Conflict zones such as Gaza and Sudan currently top the UN’s emergency funding priorities, with millions of civilians facing acute shortages of food, medicine, and shelter.
The conflict’s impact on global trade routes is also raising the cost of critical commodities including food, fertilizer, and fuel — factors that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations in developing regions, particularly across sub-Saharan Africa.
Humanitarian workers themselves are also increasingly at risk. Aid agencies report rising attacks on humanitarian personnel operating in conflict zones worldwide.
What’s Being Said
“Aid workers are increasingly under attack,” Fletcher said. “Human ingenuity is being applied to find ever more sinister ways to kill at scale.”
“This is a tough moment for humanitarian action. We are overstretched, under sustained attack and under-resourced, but we refuse to retreat from our principles,” Fletcher added.
What’s Next
- The UN is expected to intensify diplomatic efforts to secure additional funding for its humanitarian appeal.
- Aid agencies are pushing for stronger protections for humanitarian workers operating in conflict zones.
- Global markets will monitor the impact of disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz on energy and food supply chains.
