US Aid Freeze Forces NRC to Suspend Humanitarian Work

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) announced on Monday that it has been forced to suspend its aid programs in nearly 20 countries. The decision comes in response to the U.S. government’s recent freeze on foreign assistance under President Donald Trump’s administration.

For the first time in its history, the NRC—a leading international humanitarian organization—has had to halt urgent relief efforts, affecting hundreds of thousands of people struggling in conflict zones, disaster-stricken regions, and areas of mass displacement.

The organization, which provided aid to 1.6 million people in 2024 through U.S.-supported programs, stated that the abrupt funding halt has left it with no choice but to scale back its operations dramatically.

“This is an unprecedented situation,” the NRC said in a statement. “We are being forced to suspend emergency support to communities in dire need, including those along the frontlines in Ukraine.”

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The United States was a key contributor to the NRC’s funding last year, accounting for nearly 20% of its budget—approximately $150 million. However, with the sudden suspension of U.S. aid and a lack of reimbursements for already approved funding, the NRC is now facing a severe financial shortfall.

The organization revealed that it has millions of dollars in outstanding payment requests to the U.S. government. If those funds remain frozen, hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people will be left without essential humanitarian assistance.

The funding crisis is already having dire consequences. The NRC has begun laying off aid workers worldwide, including in Afghanistan, where humanitarian needs are at critical levels. Additionally, it has been forced to halt life-saving programs funded by the U.S. in Burkina Faso and Sudan’s conflict-ravaged Darfur region.

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Since his return to the White House last month, President Trump has taken aggressive steps to cut back on foreign assistance, including ordering the suspension of humanitarian funding and pushing for the closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the government body responsible for distributing American aid globally.

These policy changes are now having far-reaching consequences, putting millions at risk and forcing humanitarian organizations like the NRC to make impossible decisions about which communities they can continue to support.