UN agency suspends medical services for almost 1 million refugees in Egypt amid ‘global humanitarian funding crisis’

Citing a funding shortfall, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Egypt announced on Tuesday morning the suspension of all medical services for almost a million refugees in the country.

The agency will henceforth support only emergency life-saving procedures.

“The reality is simple — without these much needed funds, people will suffer, and many will die,” said Public Health Officer for UNHCR Egypt Jakob Arhem in a written statement to Mada Masr.

The UNHCR, the main UN agency working with refugees globally, said in a statement that it was forced to suspend medical services for thousands of patients due to lack of funds and deep uncertainty over the level of donor contributions this year, amid what it described as a “global humanitarian funding crisis.”

The media office told Mada Masr that the United States’ recent and dramatic cuts to external aid along with reductions from many other donors contributed to the funding deficit.

The decision will impact the eligibility of all refugees and asylum seekers registered with UNHCR in Egypt, around 933,000 people, according to the agency’s latest estimate, including more than 656,000 from Sudan.

The agency said that around 20,000 people will be directly affected by suspensions of cancer surgery, chemotherapy, heart surgery and medication for chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.

“The funding cuts mean we can no longer provide essential medicines, mental health treatment or cancer care for refugees,” Arhem elaborated. 

This crisis follows US President Donald Trump’s decision in January to halt US international aid, which affected thousands of programs across the globe. 

On his first day in office, Trump ordered the immediate suspension of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) for 90 days, freezing thousands of US-funded programs and scholarships across the world.

In February, the Trump administration said it plans to eliminate more than 90 percent of USAID’s foreign aid contracts and cut US$60 billion in overall global US assistance. Court challenges to the decision are pending, though the impact of the funding freeze has thrown programs and humanitarian and development operations into immediate uncertainty.

Apart from the shockwave caused by Trump’s decision, global humanitarian funding has been decreasing across the board, the agency said, with many donors cutting down their contributions.

UNHCR’ s statement noted that the agency planned to raise $135 million in funding last year to support its services in Egypt, but received less than half of that amount.

Its latest factsheet also said it received only 16 percent of the $137.7 million targeted for this year so far.

Some of the most vulnerable people in Egypt will be harmed by the service suspension, including Sudanese refugees who were displaced north by the war in their country.

“Many refugees fled Sudan because they could no longer find medical treatment,” said Arhem. “Now, due to funding cuts, they are facing the same reality in exile.”

“Without urgent support, people will get sicker, weaker — and many will die. Shutting down life-saving programs is devastating and, every day, I hope for a miracle to keep them running,” Arhem said.

Egypt has absorbed over 1.5 million Sudanese refugees since the war began in April 2023, including those registered by UNHCR.

Egypt has become increasingly hostile to refugees, however, with Egyptian officials repeatedly stating that the country cannot continue to provide services to refugees and foreign nationals.