2026 Seminars

This session is intended to be a high-level, multi-stakeholder conversation confronting one of the most urgent yet under-addressed issues in global development: the ongoing reorganisation of the humanitarian aid sector and critically its impact on health.  The humanitarian sector stands at a critical juncture and, as crises grow in scale, complexity, and frequency, the systems designed to respond to them are being reshaped and becoming increasingly politicised, with core principles unravelling, often without transparent dialogue about who is included, who benefits, and who is excluded. 

Today, the moral imperative no longer sounds the bell; aid is positioned as a strategic investment or an entire abdication of responsibility. But we don’t have to choose between our morals, principles and investments. Investing in aid can simultaneously sustain global security, economic stability and human potential, whilst also being accountable to our collective responsibility to protect justice, human rights and the health and well-being of humanity and the environment in our world. But critically, it matters how we do this to ensure we deconstruct the inequitable systems within the ecosystem that have upheld and protected unequal power imbalances between funders, governments, countries and communities. If the model is no longer fit for purpose, what comes next? What model(s) replaces it? And how do we build it to meet our collective responsibility to create a model which represents and works for those most impacted by the crises of today and tomorrow.

This session therefore intends to create space for a frank, solutions-oriented discussion through the lens of health among key actors from across the humanitarian ecosystem such as funders, the private sector, youth, INGOs, women and girl advocates. It will be intentionally candid and will aim to surface difficult truths and challenge assumptions to build a clearer understanding of the inequities shaping humanitarian reform and explore how emerging models, financing approaches and active partnerships designed with intention can enable us to move forward equitably and collectively.

Through this, we hope to:

• To critically examine the current and emerging structure of the humanitarian system and its impact on health
• To identify gaps in representation, financing, and accountability
• To elevate the voices and needs of populations most at risk of being overlooked
• To foster cross-sector dialogue on more equitable and effective approaches to health in emergencies
• To explore the emerging models, financing approaches, and partnerships that are working, and to surface what makes them durable.