Meetup 29 (78 inscrits, 57 attendees)

How can humanitarian actors set priorities under increasing restrictions?

The abrupt announcement -on Jan 20 2025- of closing USAID shocked global health, and its effects continue to unfurl. Critical lifesaving projects stopped suddenly; some health services vanished; some are deteriorating. Meanwhile, the USA has started to sign bilateral health agreements with some African countries, showing a preference for one-to-one agreements that bypass international, collaborative decision-making bodies in the region. Beyond the health sector, public systems that have been reinforced with the help of humanitarians and development projects are at risk of eroding. It is not only the US, though its actions were the most dramatic. More broadly, other high-income countries are decreasing contributions. In turn, the humanitarian and development sectors experience financial (and other) pressures while urgent needs continue to increase, amidst heightened instability and conflicts. How have humanitarians managed the ethical issues raised by the sudden cuts? What should their priorities be in this period of transition? How can they reconciliate the tension between demands for (global) health security and the aspiration of universal health coverage?  Thinking of the future, what should a new and transformed humanitarianism look like? What should be its organizing vision and ethical basis? What will be the implications of these new relationships for health equity? Four panelists will share their insights on these questions: Lisa Eckenwiler, Mayfourth Luneta, Raffaella Ravinetto, and Samir Elharaway.

Tuesday 17 February 2026, 3PM Geneva Time

• Chair: Sally Davies, writer and editor
• Lisa Eckenwiler (leckenwi@gmu.edu)

Lisa Eckenwiler 

Professor, Department of Philosophy, George Mason University, USA

• Mayfourth Luneta (mdluneta@cdp.org.ph)

Mayfourth Luneta

Deputy Executive Director of Centers for Disaster Preparedness, Philippines 

• Raffaella Ravinetto (rravinetto@itg.be et raffaella.ravinetto@gmail.com)

Raffaella Ravinetto

Head of Public Health Department, Institute Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium

• Samir Elharaway (selhawary@unicef.org)

Samir Elharaway

Director of Innovation for UNICEF, NYC