US Funds Enable Critical Aid in Crisis Zones—From Bread in Syria to keeping people warm near the frontlines in Ukraine

Published: Feb 20, 2025 Reading time: 7 minutes Share:

Food, shelter, drinking water, fuel, and basic health care—these are examples of the humanitarian assistance we have provided to hundreds of thousands of people in Ukraine, Syria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Armenia with money from the U.S. government. The forced suspension of our US-funded projects has affected many ordinary people in crisis areas. In Syria, over 140 000 people have been left without access to food aid. Our SOS appeal and the Friends of People in Need Club allow us to mitigate the impact.

Instead of choosing who will go to school, millions of Syrians must decide who will eat. What they earn is barely enough to survive. Due to a war-torn economy, securing bread has become a daily struggle in Syria.

Almost 21,000 families in 38 villages received subsidised bread through our US-funded project. One of them is the family of Sahar, who cares for two of her grandchildren —their mother was killed in an airstrike.

“We receive free bread from People in Need every day,” Sahar said. “The bread is delivered to the camp, which makes it easier for us because our camp is far from markets.”

Sahar has been displaced multiple times; when we met her, she was living in a tent in an informal settlement.

Khaled, a displaced father in northern Syria, highlighted the benefits of our electronic food vouchers.

“My children wanted to work to support our family, but thanks to these vouchers, I insisted they continue their education,” Khaled shared.

Currently, we are not able to continue supporting people with food vouchers, as funding of this project was suspended. The only ongoing activity is our support to bakeries, as the flour used for subsidised bread was already purchased and delivered.

Through our current US-funded projects, we have reached 400,525 people. However, due to the freeze in funding, we have had to suspend critical, life-saving programmes, including food and nutrition support. In Syria, this means that over 140,000 people are now left without food, drinking water, or agricultural support despite the immense and ongoing needs.

DRC: Treatment for Malnourished Children

Cash assistance has been vital for over 2,500 families in eastern DRC. This region has been plagued by conflict for years, and hundreds of thousands of people have fled their homes. Moreover, just in the last few months, we provided almost 5,000 families with food assistance—critical for their survival as they flee the combat zone. The families fleeing are in dire need of food, as they have fled from their fields and their homes.

In addition to food and cash aid, US funding allows us to provide repairs to water sources. This work is critical as water is a vital life-sustaining resource and many communities in the eastern DRC are beset by unsafe and polluted water sources which contribute to disease and sickness.

Children are dying from malnutrition. We have helped thousands by providing ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF) to remote health centres. Thanks to USAID, our health workers in Mulenge provided this food to young Emeri, a small child suffering from malnutrition. His mother sought help after realising he was very sick. Not all children are so lucky, as therapeutic food is often lacking.

In DRC, our colleagues show parents how to cook nutritious food from local ingredients. In remote villages, we facilitate participatory cooking demonstrations using ingredients like flour, fish, oil, sugar, and vegetables.

“We also learned what kind of food pregnant and breastfeeding women should eat,” said Mwamini Tulinabo, a mother of three from Bwegera.

Ukraine: Heating and shelter

As the third year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine approached, humanitarian needs continue to rise. With US support, we have been repairing damaged houses, delivering fuel briquettes, and restoring access to clean water. Fuel assistance is critical for frontline communities where many have lost their jobs. In Chornobaivka, a village just 5 kilometres from the frontline in Kherson Oblast, we provided fuel briquettes to large families and people with disabilities.

In eastern and southern Ukraine, continuous shelling has severely damaged water supply infrastructure. We have supported numerous water utilities, restoring access to clean water for thousands. For example, equipment that we provided to the Marhanets water company now supplies safe drinking water to over 30,000 residents.

“Thank you for paying attention to us and taking such an important step: installing a water purification system,” says Iryna Naumovych from Mykolaiv Oblast.

People living under constant shelling also need materials for emergency housing repairs and hygiene products. With US support, we have consistently provided these necessities. We have equipped collective centres and provided cash to those forced to flee their homes.

Ongoing attacks have forced thousands of people from their homes. Many displaced families urgently need financial support to rebuild their lives. US funding has helped displaced entrepreneurs restart businesses. With grant support, Hanna, who fled Donetsk Oblast and left her business behind and opened a kindergarten in western Ukraine; now she is giving displaced children a safe space to learn and grow.

At present, we have been compelled to end the provision of financial grants for relocated businesses. This suspension has impacted approximately 2,500 people. In light of this, we are exploring alternative opportunities to ensure the continuation of support through these grants, including the use of funds from our SOS Ukraine Emergency Appeal.

Armenia: Safe Spaces for Displaced Children

Since September 2020, Armenia has faced immense challenges. The 44-day war in Nagorno-Karabakh forced thousands from their homes. For children, this was extra stressful due to the lack of playing opportunities, seeing family members cry, and hearing about the losses of their loved ones on the frontlines.

To heal children‘s stress and trauma, we opened child-friendly spaces (CFS) and introduced psychologists to Goris. With USAID funding, we expanded our efforts, equipping five more CFSs, including in remote, rural, and border communities These spaces have served over 300 displaced and vulnerable children each year. For children like Aleksander (11), who lost his mother in the war, these efforts mean everything. He now lives with his aunt in Goris. His favourite place is the CFS, where he often draws pictures of his mother and dreams of her.

Armenia’s challenges didn’t end with the 2020 war. Over 120,000 ethnic Armenians were displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023.

"Throughout the last year alone, we directly supported approximately 7,000 families—reaching over 30,000 people across Armenia—thanks to donors, including the U.S. Government," says Varduhi Dadunts, Country Director, People in Need Armenia.

Our assistance includes hygiene kits, clothing, and equipment vouchers. We also support people in winter through utility subsidies and eco-friendly heating briquettes. In addition, our vocational training and support for small family businesses are crucial for the integration of people coming to Armenia.

Beyond emergency response, US funding has helped build shelters in Armenia’s border communities, ensuring that civilians have safe places to go during natural and man-made disasters.

At the moment, both two US-funded projects in Armenia are temporarily suspended. However, we are still working towards our initial goal, not to harm communities.

The Needs Remain Immense

US government funding represents approximately one-quarter of our humanitarian and development aid budget. In 2023 alone, US-funded aid administered through PIN has reached approx. 830,000 people.

"Thanks to USAID support, our life-saving programs have reached hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people in Syria over the past years," warns Wail Khazal, PIN Syria Country Director. "However, activities like food and nutrition support are now suspended, while needs remain immense. Without sustained funding, people will face an uncertain future."

Despite all our efforts, the need for help is growing not only in Syria but also in DRC, Ukraine, and elsewhere; at the same time, our ability to provide support is shrinking due to funding cuts. The support of private donors and individuals will be crucial to maintaining aid where it is needed most and mitigating the impact of changes in US foreign policy.