As a charity, we have always followed a God-given, clear mandate: to stand with children in some of the most desperate of circumstances, especially where need is greatest, and hope is hardest to find.
Annually, we cross-reference global data, humanitarian assessments, and independent reports to ensure that our work remains true to our mission.
In a way that is deliberate rather than tokenistic, we ask ourselves hard questions: are we present where suffering is most acute? Are we truly reaching the children most at risk? And are we, in real and measurable terms, bringing care and relief into the deepest darkness?
Each year, we review an assessment identifying the 10 countries at greatest risk of new or worsening humanitarian emergencies, revealing where some children are most vulnerable. This year’s findings resonate deeply with CRY’s mission and underline why our work matters more than ever.
Data from the International Rescue Committee shows that the world’s forecasted ten worst humanitarian crises in 2026 are places of extreme danger, deprivation, and loss—especially for children. Once again, as heartbreaking as it is, CRY’s work over the years has brought us directly into these spaces of profound need.
Of the ten crises on the list, CRY is currently supporting children in—or displaced from—eight, as well as an additional three countries from the extended assessment.*
This is not a statistic we share with pride, but with humility and resolve. It speaks not only to the scale of global suffering, but to the urgency of sustained, compassionate action.
These are places where childhood is interrupted by conflict, hunger, displacement, and fear—yet they are also places where even the smallest acts of care can mean relief, dignity, and the chance of a future.
In the deepest darkness, light matters more than ever. And so we remain—where it hurts most—because that is where children need us to be. You can be part of bringing that light too.
Above, children at the CRY X IDS feeding programme in Goma, DRC.
We invite you to explore the different ways for you to take action and push back on injustice and poverty globally by clicking here.
*South Sudan, West Bank/Gaza, Haiti, Sudan, Myanmar, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, and Burkina Faso. In the extended list: Afghanistan, Ukraine, and Nigeria.
