By Caroline Katana
A new global survey by the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH) has revealed a severe funding crisis that is crippling programs supporting the health and rights of women, children, and adolescents worldwide.
The findings, released in Geneva, show that most frontline organizations are struggling to maintain essential services as international donor support declines and global instability intensifies.
According to the report, nearly nine in ten (89%) organizations surveyed said they had faced reduced or uncertain funding over the past year.
More than eight in ten (81%) reported moderate to severe effects on their ability to advance women’s, children’s, and adolescents’ health (WCAH) goals.
“This is not just a financial crisis, it’s a human one, as funding dries up, frontline organizations are being forced to scale back or suspend services that millions of women and children depend on, the world cannot afford to lose this momentum,” said Rajat Khosla, Executive Director of PMNCH.
The survey paints a picture of widespread disruption as sixty-two percent of organizations reported downsizing operations, 37 percent had temporarily suspended activities, and nearly one in five (19 percent) said they had permanently closed some programs.
Respondents said that donor fatigue, geopolitical conflicts, shifting public health priorities, and misinformation are worsening the crisis, and in some cases, health services were halted overnight.
“On 31st January, we were instructed to stop the implementation of our health programme with effect from 1st February. The abrupt decision had a devastating impact,” one respondent reported.
Such abrupt changes, according to PMNCH, erode public trust and undo years of community engagement and progress in healthcare access.
Programs promoting sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) have been among the hardest hit.
Many respondents cited an increase in socio-political pushback and growing resistance to SRHR education and advocacy.
“The most critical cuts have been in sexual and reproductive health and rights programming; there is growing uncertainty among staff, youth leaders, and communities,” one respondent reported.
In some countries, adolescent health and sexuality education programs have been suspended altogether due to funding shortages or policy restrictions.
Others said anti-gender movements have intensified, making SRHR advocacy increasingly risky and underfunded.
The global funding squeeze has also severely affected training and capacity building for health professionals.
A number of respondents, including national midwifery and nursing associations, reported program closures and staff layoffs due to lack of funds.
“Several midwifery associations at the national level immediately closed programmes and training due to a lack of funding,” one representative said.
PMNCH warns that reduced investment in the health workforce will have long-term consequences for the quality and accessibility of care, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
The survey highlights a growing shift from long-term, community-driven initiatives to short-term, donor-prioritized projects that focus narrowly on measurable outcomes.
“Donor funding has shifted away from long-term, community-based engagement to shorter-term, outcome-specific projects,” one respondent said.
This trend, PMNCH cautions, risks undermining the sustainability of public health systems, weakening community trust, and limiting innovation in women’s and children’s health programs.
Youth-focused initiatives have also suffered.
Several organizations said they were forced to scale down or suspend youth-led advocacy and mentorship programs due to financial and policy constraints.
“Our adolescent health outreach, which used to reach schools and youth centers, has been reduced in scale due to funding constraints,” one youth organization said.
PMNCH warns that excluding young people from advocacy and decision-making processes could reverse gains in youth participation and limit progress toward healthier, more equitable societies.
Despite the crisis, partners remain determined to keep their work alive.
When asked about priorities for building resilience, most organizations identified flexible, core funding as their top need (79%), followed by capacity building (59%) and joint advocacy campaigns (58%).
Grassroots organizations stressed the importance of collaboration and shared learning to reduce dependency on foreign aid.
“As a grassroots NGO in rural and tribal areas, we see adolescent girls and children most at risk,” one respondent added.
To sustain and expand our programmes, we need stronger pooling of local and international financial support.
Helen Clark, Chair of the PMNCH Board, urged the global community to act decisively.
“Partners are calling for solidarity, not charity, “they know what works. What they need are the resources and political space to keep doing it.” she noted
PMNCH is urging donors, policymakers, and world leaders to protect and expand financing for women’s, children’s, and adolescents’ health emphasizing the need for long-term, flexible funding that empowers local organizations to adapt to crises and sustain progress.
“Hold the line on WCAH,” Khosla said. “Every delay, every funding cut, risks reversing years of progress. We need sustained investment and coordinated action to ensure that no woman, child, or adolescent is left behind.”
The PMNCH Partner Survey gathered insights from 103 organizations across Africa, Latin America, and South-East Asia.
Respondents included non-governmental organizations (58%), youth groups (18%), and academic and research institutions (15%), most of which operate at the national level.
