— PRISM in Focus

Protection in Focus

In 2026, the Global Protection Cluster estimates 351 million people exposed to protection risks and 139 million people in need of protection, while only 51 million are targeted with protection interventions. PRISM's Protection in Focus triangulates ACAPS protection risk monitoring, the GPC's protection situation updates and 9,940 ReliefWeb updates to document protection risks.

Global Protection Cluster — published 2026 global figures.

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— The taxonomy

Fifteen risks, one shared language.

Among 34,808 protection risk events documented by ACAPS and PRISM's curated dataset, attacks on civilians accounts for 31%, followed by abduction & arbitrary detention (14%), gender-based violence (13%), discrimination & denial of access (9%), movement restrictions & siege (8%). Every event is classified against the fifteen protection risks of the Global Protection Cluster framework.

R01

Abduction & arbitrary detention

4,852 events

R02

Attacks on civilians

10,889 events

R03

Family separation

386 events

R04

Child & forced marriage

704 events

R05

Discrimination & denial of access

3,192 events

R06

Disinformation

1,097 events

R07

Child recruitment

709 events

R08

Gender-based violence

4,383 events

R09

Denial of identity & justice

316 events

R10

Mines & explosive ordnance

573 events

R11

Psychological abuse

602 events

R12

Theft, extortion & eviction

1,751 events

R13

Torture & inhuman treatment

1,132 events

R14

Trafficking & forced labour

1,304 events

R15

Movement restrictions & siege

2,918 events

ACAPS — Protection Risks Monitor; PRISM protection archive.

— The map · 107 countries

Where the record points.

This map showcases the dominant risk category and the number of documented protection risk events for each country.

ACAPS — Protection Risks Monitor; PRISM protection archive. Boundaries: Natural Earth.

— Protection severity per country

How severe, and for whom.

The Global Protection Cluster scores each protection risk in each response country on a five-band severity scale, from minimal to catastrophic. Read down a column for a country's risk profile; read across a row to see where one risk bites hardest.

Global Protection Cluster — Protection Analytical Framework.

— Need and neglect · 2026

83 million people need protection. Plans target 32 million, and the response is 46.4% funded.

Across 22 humanitarian response plans, protection asks for $2.4 billion; $1.1 billion has arrived. Most of it goes to general protection; the specialised areas of responsibility — child protection, gender-based violence, mine action, housing, land and property — divide what is left.

Counted plan by plan from OCHA's Humanitarian Programme Cycle, that is 83 million in need and 32 million targeted across the 22 plans publishing a protection caseload. The Global Protection Cluster's own global figures are higher — 139 million and 51 million — because they reach beyond those plans, and a plan that publishes no cluster-level figure adds nothing to the sum here.

OCHA — Humanitarian Programme Cycle; OCHA FTS.

— Protection funding · 2021–2026

Requirements peaked in 2023, coverage in 2024. Both have fallen since.

Protection asked for $3.1 billion in 2023 and $2.4 billion this year, while the share actually funded fell from 61% to 46.4%. The current year is still accruing.

OCHA — Humanitarian Programme Cycle; OCHA FTS.

— Capacities under pressure

The capacity to see protection risks is being cut.

The Global Protection Cluster consulted 747 partners across 22 operations. Reductions are landing at the same time on the functions that identify who is most at risk, refer them, and follow up.

69%

of partners report capacity impacts

72%

report frontline workforce loss

64%

report reduced activities

62%

report reduced geographic coverage

1

Frontline workforce is being reduced

7 in 10 partners report cuts to frontline staff, directly affecting case identification, follow-up and sustained presence in communities.

2

The services package is narrowing

6 in 10 report fewer services delivered, with 8 in 10 reporting impacts across case management, MHPSS, monitoring and community-based activities.

3

Geographic reach is shrinking

6 in 10 report reduced coverage — weaker proximity to affected populations and loss of continuity in high-risk or hard-to-reach areas.

4

The community interface is weakening

Over 7 in 10 report impacts on community-based, monitoring and awareness activities, weakening trust, early detection and responsiveness.

5

System-enabling capacities are being eroded

Around 7 in 10 report impacts on capacity strengthening, protection analysis, early warning and advocacy — the functions that let a response adapt.

In simple terms: people have fewer chances to be seen, fewer chances to speak safely, and fewer chances to receive support before harm becomes more serious.

Global Protection Cluster — Protection Capacities Under Pressure (July 2026).

— Spotlight · Palestine

Only one country has more documented protection risk events in the archive.

0

documented protection risk events since 2016

4.38/5

protection severity — extreme (GPC)

6.5/10

INFORM Risk — high risk class

2.0M

people living in internal displacement (2025)

1.2M

in acute food insecurity, phase 3+ (58% of those analysed) — IPC/CH Apr 2026 - Jun 2026

5.5M

people exposed to protection risks

Most documented risk — attacks on civilians (57% of the country's record)

Despite a ceasefire in place since October 2025, humanitarian conditions across the Occupied Palestinian Territory remain critical, marked by ongoing violence, severe access constraints, and deteriorating living standards. In Gaza, most of the population remains internally displaced under harsh conditions, with military strikes continuing to cause casualties—312 Palestinians were killed and at least 379 injured in April 2026 alone (WHO).

PRISM situation briefing · generated 2026-08-17 · from the ReliefWeb record · read in full

ACAPS / PRISM protection archive; Global Protection Cluster; EC JRC INFORM Risk; IDMC GIDD; IPC/CH.

— Spotlight · Sudan

The largest displacement crisis on earth is also a protection crisis.

0

documented protection risk events since 2021

4.62/5

protection severity — catastrophic (GPC)

7.8/10

INFORM Risk — very high risk class

9.1M

people living in internal displacement (2025)

19.5M

in acute food insecurity, phase 3+ (41% of those analysed) — IPC/CH Feb 2026 - May 2026

43.8M

people exposed to protection risks

Most documented risk — attacks on civilians (50% of the country's record)

Sudan's armed conflict has exceeded 1,200 days, with conditions continuing to deteriorate across multiple regions. North Darfur has experienced further deterioration, with remote rural communities facing extreme hunger, widespread displacement, and collapsing basic services (Kids for Kids). Nearly 39,000 displaced children arrived in El Obeid, North Kordofan, during the first six months of 2026, contributing to a total population of over 605,000 people now residing in El Obeid town and Sheikan locality who have fled violence and attacks on civilian infrastructure (Save the Children).

PRISM situation briefing · generated 2026-08-17 · from the ReliefWeb record · read in full

ACAPS / PRISM protection archive; Global Protection Cluster; EC JRC INFORM Risk; IDMC GIDD; IPC/CH.

— Spotlight · Syria

Fourteen years of crisis, and the record is still growing.

0

documented protection risk events since 2019

3.35/5

protection severity — severe (GPC)

7.7/10

INFORM Risk — very high risk class

6.0M

people living in internal displacement (2025)

15.0M

people exposed to protection risks

Most documented risk — attacks on civilians (26% of the country's record)

Syria's political landscape is undergoing significant transition following the 30 January 2026 ceasefire agreement between the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES) and the Government of Syria, which initiated the integration of governance structures in Al-Hasakeh, Deir-ez-Zor, Ar-Raqqa governorates, and the Ain-al-Arab district of Aleppo (REACH). Integration progress has been uneven, with government Internal Security vehicles beginning unaccompanied patrols in Hasakeh city for the first time, marking gradual normalization of centralized government control (ETANA).

PRISM situation briefing · generated 2026-08-23 · from the ReliefWeb record · read in full

ACAPS / PRISM protection archive; Global Protection Cluster; EC JRC INFORM Risk; IDMC GIDD; IPC/CH.

— How PRISM watches

A record that cannot be quietly unwritten.

Source datasets serve rolling windows: what falls out of the window disappears. PRISM syncs the ACAPS Protection Risks Monitor every 12 hours into a preservation archive that only accumulates, and layers its own monitoring on top.

Preserve

Every documented event is kept beyond its source's serving window: 34,808 events back to 2014, none deleted.

Curate

PRISM analysts correct, contextualise and extend the record with PRISM-documented events, each carrying its provenance so ACAPS and PRISM entries are always distinguishable.

Verify

AI-assisted monitoring proposes candidate events from cited humanitarian sources; nothing publishes without human review. Every published row traces to a source link.

PRISM — protection monitoring methodology.

— In closing

Protection failures are documented one event at a time. Keeping that record intact, attributable and public is itself a form of protection.

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