As Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine enters its fifth year, UN agencies warned Friday of deepening humanitarian crises affecting women, health care, and basic services, compounded by severe funding shortages.
Women and girls continue to bear a heavy toll. More than 5,000 have been killed and 14,000 injured since February 2022, with 2025 "the deadliest year so far," UN Women said.
Women-led organizations, central to delivering protection, psychosocial support, and economic assistance, are now at risk of collapse due to funding cuts, Sabine Freizer Gunes, a representative of UN Women in Ukraine, told reporters in Geneva.
"One in three women-led organizations surveyed warned that they may not survive beyond six months," said Freizer-Gunes.
The war's destruction of energy infrastructure has created life-threatening winter conditions, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said in the same press briefing. Millions are living without reliable heating or electricity, with older people and those with chronic illnesses particularly vulnerable.
"The energy crisis is a humanitarian crisis," said Jamie Wah, IFRC deputy head of delegation in Ukraine.
Generators provide only temporary relief and cannot sustain prolonged outages that sometimes last beyond 24 hours, officials said.
The IFRC's emergency appeal for 2026-2027 faces a "funding gap of more than 260 million Swiss francs," she said, stressing: "Without sustained support, assistance will be reduced, repairs delayed and vulnerable families left with fewer options."
Ukraine's health system is also under severe strain. The World Health Organization (WHO) has verified more than 2,872 attacks on health care facilities, resulting in at least 233 deaths and 937 injuries among staff and patients.
Mental health needs are widespread, WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier said, with 72% of people reporting anxiety, depression, or related issues in the past year.
Meanwhile, access to medicines remains limited due to high costs and shortages.
The conflict has also driven a sharp increase in disability, with nearly 390,000 additional people reported disabled since 2022, according to Lindmeier.
Despite large-scale humanitarian operations, resources are dwindling. The UN's 2026 humanitarian response plan for Ukraine seeks $2.31 billion to assist 4.12 million people, but had received only 14% of the required funding as of Feb. 19.
