Policy Updates

On September 26, 2025, at a meeting of the AHLC, Norway and 11 other countries launched the Emergency Coalition for the Financial Sustainability of the PA, with Norway contributing NOK40 million (US$4 million) to a crisis package.

The coalition, which also includes Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK, was established to stabilize the PA’s finances and preserve its ability to govern. The launch took place during an AHLC meeting in New York chaired by Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide, with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa attending virtually. The coalition demanded that Israel immediately release all Palestinian clearance revenues, which constitute over 60% of the revenue the PA needs.

The crisis package aims to support essential services like hospitals and schools. Norway’s contribution is in addition to NOK200 million (US$20 million) in budget support transferred earlier in 2025. The coalition will also promote a sustainable and coordinated approach with IFIs to support reforms and ensure accountability, affirming the effort as an investment in regional peace and the two-state solution.

On September 22, 2025 at the UN General Assembly in New York, Australia launched the Declaration for the Protection of Humanitarian Personnel, joined by more than 100 countries and supported by an AUD15 million (US$10 million) pledge to protect and honor humanitarian personnel

The declaration, developed in partnership with countries including Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, and the UK, pledges new measures to ensure the safety of humanitarian personnel. The measures include commitments to facilitate access, provide faster visas and work permits, and implement joint training for military personnel and humanitarian workers.

The funding will be channeled through the UNDSS, the OCHA, and the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. Additional funding will support LAW, the RFF, and HO to maintain the AWSD.

On September 15, 2025, a UN Women report revealed that progress on women's rights is stagnating and regressing due to conflict, aid cuts, and a backlash against gender equality, and called on governments at the UN General Assembly in New York to commit to renewed action, highlighting that the US$420 billion needed annually to advance gender equality is a fraction of the US$2.7 trillion spent on the military.

The report, a gender snapshot monitoring progress on the SDGs, found that 676 million women and girls lived near deadly conflict in 2024, the highest number since the 1990s. Women are also more likely to be affected by rising food insecurity. The report projects that climate change could push an additional 158.3 million women and girls into extreme poverty by 2050.

Director of UN Women’s policy division, Sarah Hendriks, contrasted the US$2.7 trillion in annual military spending with the estimated US$420 billion needed to advance gender equality. The report also noted a digital gender divide, which if addressed, could lift 30 million women and girls out of poverty by 2050 and generate a US$1.5 trillion increase in global GDP by 2030. UN Women is calling for renewed commitments at the UN General Assembly, 30 years after the Beijing Declaration.

On September 5, 2025, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer appointed Yvette Cooper as the new Foreign Secretary, replacing David Lammy, with Shabana Mahmood replacing Cooper as the new Home Secretary, as part of a wider cabinet reshuffle.

The reshuffle followed the resignation of former Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner on the same day.

Cooper previously served as Home Secretary since July 2024. Mahmood was the former Justice Secretary. Lammy, the former Foreign Secretary, will now serve as Justice Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister.

As part of the reshuffle, Lucy Powell and Ian Murray were dismissed from their roles as leader of the House of Commons and Scotland Secretary, respectively.

On August 31, 2025, the UK government announced GBP3 million (US$4 million) in new funding through the UNFPA to provide life-saving support for pregnant women, new mothers, and girls in Gaza.

The announcement came amid a catastrophic humanitarian crisis and famine in parts of Gaza. Minister for the FCDO David Lammy stated that the healthcare system has been decimated and called for an immediate ceasefire and a surge in humanitarian assistance. The UK government urged the Israeli government to allow sufficient aid into Gaza to address the man-made catastrophe.

The new funding is part of a GBP60 million (US$82 million) humanitarian funding package for the Occupied Palestinian Territories for the financial year. The support, delivered through the UN’s sexual and reproductive health agency ( UNFPA), will deploy midwives and deliver emergency medical supplies. UNFPA Arab States Regional Director Laila Baker noted that the contribution will support mobile maternity units

On August 26, 2025, the UNDP Climate Finance Network and UNCDF convened over 150 participants from 20 countries in Bangkok for a dialogue on mobilizing inclusive climate finance to build resilience in the Asia-Pacific region.

The dialogue addressed the Asia-Pacific region's extreme vulnerability to climate change and the widening gap between funding needs and available resources. UNDP Deputy Regional Director Christophe Bahuet noted the importance of equipping governments with sustainable finance mechanisms to respond to crises. With official development assistance projected to decline, UNCDF's Maria Perdomo stressed the urgent need to mobilize private sector capital for climate action, particularly in the most vulnerable countries.

Key partners, including the UK's FCDO and Sweden, echoed the dialogue's urgent message. Head of Climate and Environment, Indo-Pacific Regional Department at the FCDO John Warburton emphasized that adaptation finance is a matter of survival and fairness. Annamaria Oltorp from the Embassy of Sweden highlighted the need to mobilize resources and forge stronger public-private partnerships to drive collective climate action.

The conference also highlighted successful regional initiatives, such as Indonesia raising over US$10 billion through green bonds and Thailand raising over US$800 million from sustainability-linked bonds. The three-day event aims to find pathways for stronger collaboration and new financing initiatives to accelerate access to climate finance for vulnerable communities.

On August 14, 2025, the resumed 5^th session of the INC-5.2 in Geneva, Switzerland, concluded without reaching a consensus on a legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution, though UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen and UN Secretary-General António Guterres noted that all member states agreed to continue negotiations.

Negotiations to establish a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution concluded without an agreement. UN officials, including UNEP Executive Director Andersen and UN Secretary-General Guterres, acknowledged the outcome but emphasized that all countries remained committed to the process. The talks, which included delegates from 183 nations and representatives from over 400 CSOs faced significant differences on key issues.

The US delegation supported an agreement that allows for tailored, country-specific solutions to reduce plastic pollution while opposing prescriptive, top-down regulations. INC Chair Luis Vayas Valdivieso and INC Executive Secretary Jyoti Mathur-Filipp reaffirmed their dedication to moving forward and achieving a future agreement.

On August 13, 2025, reports indicate the UK ministers are considering eliminating their commitment to ensure 80% of bilateral development funding focuses on gender equality by 2030, a portfolio that provisionally totaled US$15.1 billion in 2024.

The commitment was made by the previous Conservative government in 2023 and reaffirmed by Labour ministers in March 2025, despite overall development funding cuts from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI. Foreign Secretary David Lammy stated in July 2025 that the government would review past decisions. A FCDO spokesperson confirmed that a review of existing commitments was underway but reiterated that women and girls remain a fundamental priority for the department.

Critics from organizations including Bond and Plan International UK warned that removing the 80% target could compound the negative effects of recent US rollbacks on funding for gender and diversity programs. Sarah Champion, Chair of the IDC, emphasized that UK commitments are a lifeline for vulnerable women and girls, particularly when other donors are retreating.

On August 9, 2025, the UK announced an additional GBP8.5 million (US$11 million) in humanitarian funding for Gaza, urging Israel to allow more assistance into the territory and reverse its plan to expand military operations.

The funding will be delivered through the OCHA's OPT Humanitarian Fund to provide food, water, and fuel. The pledge is part of the UK's total GBP101 million (US$135 million) ODA budget for the OPT for the financial year, of which GBP60 million (US$80 million) is allocated to humanitarian support. The UK is the largest donor to the fund in 2025.

Minister for International Development Jenny Chapman stated that the humanitarian catastrophe is ongoing and called for a return to a ceasefire and the release of all hostages. Chapman noted that the new funding can only be effective if Israel allows more assistance to enter safely and securely.

On July 27, 2025, the foreign and defense ministers of Australia and the UK issued a joint statement in Darwin, Australia, reaffirming their shared commitment to the WPS agenda.

The statement, released ahead of the 25^th anniversary of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325, noted that the promise of the WPS agenda remains unfulfilled. The ministers expressed concern that women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by conflict and that their exclusion from peace processes prevents lasting security. The nations also highlighted their concern about the use of conflict-related sexual violence as a tactic of war.

Both nations committed to the full implementation of the agenda, including to:

• Promote women’s leadership in all areas of peace and security;
• Support women-led organizations and human rights defenders in conflict settings;
• Strengthen accountability mechanisms to address sexual and gender-based violence; and
• Collaborate internationally to advocate for the WPS agenda.