GIRLS PAY THE PRICE AS AID CUTS HIT COUNTRIES WITH DEEPEST GENDER INEQUALITY

Toronto, October 11, 2025 – About 167 million adolescent girls growing up in countries with the widest gender equality gaps are among those worst hit by this years’ aid cuts, with the massive fall in global aid having a disproportionate impact on countries where it is hardest to be a girl, according to Save the Children analysis.

The analysis, released on International Day of the Girl, found that 17 of the 20 countries most severely affected by global aid cuts this year were ranked as having ‘poor’ (4) or ‘very poor’ (13) gender equality on the global SDG Gender Index.

Girls living in Jamaica, Eswatini and Namibia are among the worst impacted – with the highest nexus of reduction in per capita country programmable aid and gender inequality – but around 167 million adolescent girls now have fewer opportunities to achieve their basic rights such as go to school and face greater risks of violence and exclusion [1].

The aid cuts come in a year already devastating for girls living in crisis-affected countries, with more than 3.5 million adolescent girls affected by natural disasters and their aftermath since the beginning of this year and 122 million living with the uncertainty, fear and tragedy that come with life in fragile and conflict-affected areas.

Despite these emergencies, global aid has fallen about 14%, with US$22 billion lost in essential programs and humanitarian support [2].

For many girls this translates directly into lost dreams, with no single country on track to achieve gender equality by 2030, a global Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target agreed by world leaders to help achieve more peaceful and prosperous societies.

Maria*, 16, lives in a refugee camp in Tanzania, one of the countries with low levels of gender equality and where girls have been impacted the worst by 2025 aid cuts. She dreams of becoming a neurosurgeon. However, recent reductions in school services have made it difficult for her to continue her education. She told Save the Children:

“I want to study, I want to be a doctor, but without the right materials, it feels like I’m losing the fight. When we are given tests, only a few of us can do them because many don’t have notebooks. It feels unfair, but what can we do?”

Isack, Maria’s teacher, said attendance rates, dropouts and academic performance at the school have worsened because funding cuts mean children no longer receive free notebooks and girls cannot receive the sanitary pads they need to attend school.

Danny Glenwright, Save the Children President and CEO, said: 

“Girls growing up in countries affected by severe aid cuts were already facing significant barriers to realizing their rights. Now, with programs halted and essential services reduced, they are at even greater risk of violence, inequality, and conflict and with even less support.

But hope lies with girls. Around the world, they are leading change organizations in their communities, demanding climate justice, calling for an end to violence, and reimagining their futures. Girls are asking to be seen not just for the challenges they face, but for the power they hold and the solutions they bring.

Today, not a single country is on track to achieve gender equality by 2030. At current progress, a girl born today won’t see an equal society until her 97th birthday – well beyond her expected lifespan. That is unacceptable.

Canada has long been a global leader on gender equality from the G7’s Muskoka Initiative to the Feminist International Assistance Policy. At a time of widespread global cuts, Canada’s investment in women and girls is more vital than ever. Gender equality is not just a moral imperative – it’s essential for peace, prosperity, and sustainable development. Girls have a crucial stake in our collective future, and Canada has a responsibility to keep standing with them.”

As a child rights organization dedicated to ensuring all children have an equal opportunity to survive, learn, and live free from violence, Save the Children works around the world to support girls’ empowerment and gender equality.

This includes supporting the meaningful participation of girls in decision-making, providing improved and inclusive gender-responsive access to services, conducting research and budget analysis to inform good practice programming, laws and policies, and advocating to ensure decision-makers are accountable to girls.

NOTES:

• [1] 167 million adolescent girls figure is based on sex disaggregated population (aged 10-19 years) of countries rated ‘very poor’ in the Equal Measures SDG Gender Index that have experienced above average (<15% worse than average)  aid cuts based on country programmable aid (excluding humanitarian) published in the ODA Donor Tracker, which includes the 17 largest DAC donors making up 95% of global ODA; this is true in 39 of 45 countries rated globally as ‘very poor’.
• [2] In this analysis, we focus on country programmable aid (CPA), excluding humanitarian aid, refugee costs in donor countries and other expenditures not linked to recipient countries. With this more limited definition, we look at changes in aid from about US$153 billion in 2023 (latest officially reported and detailed figures) to US$131 billion in 2025/2026 (average across both years), a drop of 14%. “Worst affected” are based on per capita cuts.