GiveDirectly Prepares Emergency Cash Relief for Families Affected by Middle East Conflict

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GiveDirectly, one of the largest and most trusted direct cash relief organizations in the world, is actively preparing to deploy emergency cash transfers to families affected by the escalating Middle East conflict. The nonprofit is monitoring three regions where it may launch emergency cash responses: Lebanon, Turkey and neighboring countries, and its existing operations across Africa where fuel and food price shocks are hitting the poorest families hardest.

Why it matters

GiveDirectly is among the most evidence-backed humanitarian organizations in the world, with a model built on sending money directly to people in crisis and letting them decide what they need most. Research consistently shows that people affected by crises prefer cash over donated goods, as cash transfers help families cover essentials like food, water, medicine, transport, shelter, and rebuilding efforts.

The details

GiveDirectly is using a rigorous, evidence-based framework to assess whether and where to launch cash relief programs in response to the Middle East conflict. The organization is evaluating four key factors across the three target regions: poverty level, displacement and damage, cash feasibility, and secondary shock indicators like rising food and fuel prices. GiveDirectly's emergency cash fund allows the organization to move within days of identifying a viable path to reach families, rather than waiting weeks for traditional fundraising cycles to catch up to fast-moving events.

• The US-Israeli strikes on Iran that began February 28 have triggered a fast-moving humanitarian and economic crisis.
• Around 100,000 people have fled Tehran in the first two days following the attacks, according to local estimates.
• In Lebanon, heavy displacement is being reported across the south, the Bekaa Valley, and the southern suburbs of Beirut, with approximately 30,000 people registered at government-designated collective shelters and many more sleeping in cars or stuck on roads leaving the south.