USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA) addresses and responds to protection needs that arise during humanitarian crises, and seeks to prevent, mitigate, and respond to violence, exploitation, and abuse of affected populations, prioritizing the most vulnerable.
Life-threatening protection violations—including child abuse, forced or child marriage, intentional targeting of civilians during fighting, forced recruitment into armed groups, intimate partner violence, sexual violence, sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), and widespread psychological distress—often increase during humanitarian crises. USAID/BHA supports child protection; gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response; housing, land, and property rights; and psychosocial support (PSS), working through partners to bolster social services, protective environments, and community-led efforts to support those most at risk of abuse, exploitation, and violence.
At the global level, USAID/BHA technical specialists work to solve new and persistent challenges with innovative technical approaches and tools to improve emergency protection services. In FY 2022, USAID/BHA nongovernmental organization (NGO) and UN partners supported more than 220 protection programs in more than 40 countries and helped global programming address technical and coordination gaps worldwide.
