Development Co‑operation Profiles: Hungary
Table of contents
Hungary’s growing development co-operation programme focuses on economic development, support for crisis situations and scholarships. Its bilateral portfolio includes select partner countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Much of Hungary’s official development assistance (ODA) is channelled multilaterally through European Union (EU) institutions. Hungary’s total ODA (USD 303.4 million, preliminary data) increased in 2025, representing 0.14% of gross national income (GNI).
This profile presents verified data on Hungary’s development assistance allocations. See the Development Co-operation Profiles.
Hungary’s new international development co-operation strategy, NEFE2030 emphasises local assistance, partnerships with local intermediaries, country ownership, knowledge transfer and support in sectors where Hungary has comparative advantages. Hungary aims to contribute to sustainable development by supporting communities and governments in partner countries, taking account of their needs and environmental and social conditions. The 2024 Hungary Helps Program Act provides a legislative framework for Hungary’s development co-operation and humanitarian assistance. It focuses on long-term strategic partnerships and multi-annual planning, with the aim of making Hungary’s ODA more targeted, effective and sustainable. Within the humanitarian-development-peace nexus, Hungary engages in Sub-Saharan Africa, with particular attention to the Sahel, as well as in the Middle East, the Eastern Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans.
Sustainable water management is a priority for Hungary’s diplomacy, as is protecting minorities and cultural heritage. In its engagement with the European Union, Hungary focuses, among others, on support for the European neighbourhood and migration. Hosting arrangements help foster Budapest’s role as a regional hub for United Nations (UN) organisations and Hungary co-operates closely with the Visegrád 4 states (Czechia, Hungary, Poland and the Slovak Republic). The development co-operation strategy commits Hungary to strengthen inter-ministerial co-ordination.
The first OECD-DAC Peer Review of Hungary took place in 2023. It praised impressive ODA growth and international efforts for sustainable water management. It also highlighted partnerships with local civil society organisations (CSOs) in fragile contexts. The Peer Review encouraged Hungary to increase the impact of its engagement in partner countries, notably through strategic partnerships, and to balance tensions between domestic and global objectives. It also underlined opportunities for institutional reform to deepen collaboration across institutions and with stakeholders and to strengthen internal systems. Hungary has not yet submitted a management response to the review.
Discover insights from Hungary’s 2023 Peer Review, its management response and the 2025 mid-term review, which shows progress in the implementation of eight of the ten recommendations from the 2023 DAC Peer Review. The next Peer Review of Hungary is scheduled in 2028.
Learn from Hungary’s practices in Development Co-operation Tools Insights Practices.
Hungary provided USD 303.4 million (preliminary data) of ODA in 2025 (USD 276.3 million in constant terms), representing 0.14% of GNI.1 This was an increase of 45.7% in real terms in volume and an increase in the share of GNI from 2024. Since 2020, ODA volumes have decreased, with a sharp decline since 2022, before rebounding in 2025. Hungary is not in line with its domestic and EU commitments to achieve, respectively, a 0.33% ODA/GNI target by 2025 nor a 0.7% ODA/GNI ratio by 2030. Within Hungary’s ODA portfolio in 2024, 80.1% was provided in the form of grants and 19.9% was extended as loans.
In 2025, Hungary ranked 28th among Development Assistance Committee (DAC) members in terms of ODA volume and 28th when ODA is taken as a share of GNI. In 2024, scholarships in Hungary constituted a large share of Hungary’s bilateral ODA, illustrating the strong sectoral focus on education. Hungary stands out as the DAC member with the highest share of ODA towards developing country-based civil society organisations (65.6%) and the second highest share of gross bilateral ODA to land-locked least developed countries (LDCs) (34.3%). It is also among the top DAC members in terms of the share of gross bilateral ODA to fragile contexts (38.4%).
Hungary is committed to several international targets and DAC standards and recommendations. Learn more about DAC Recommendations.
Notes: This table only includes information about ODA data-related DAC recommendations. ODA: official development assistance; GNI: gross national income; DAC: Development Assistance Committee.
Hungary provided most of its ODA bilaterally in 2024. Gross bilateral ODA was 82.2% of total ODA disbursements. Of this, 4.5% was channelled through multilateral organisations (earmarked contributions).
In 2024, Hungary provided USD 44 million of gross ODA to the multilateral system, a fall of 27.4% in real terms from 2023. Of this, USD 36.4 million was core multilateral ODA (17.8% of total ODA), while USD 7.6 million was non-core contributions earmarked for a specific country, region, theme or purpose. Project-type funding earmarked for a specific theme and/or country accounted for 10.2% of Hungary’s non‑core contributions, and 89.8% was programmatic funding (to pooled funds and specific-purpose programmes and funds).
In 2024, top recipients of Hungary’s contribution to multilateral organisations were the European Union institutions, the World Bank Group and the UN system. The UN system received 29.2% of Hungary’s contributions to multilateral organisations, of which USD 500 thousand (3.6%) represented earmarked contributions. Out of a total volume of USD 12.9 million to the UN system, the top three UN recipients of Hungary’s support (core and earmarked contributions) were the UN Secretariat (USD 7.2 million), the United Nations Department of Peace Operations (USD 2.1 million) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (USD 1.4 million).
See the section on Geographic, sectoral and thematic focus of ODA for the breakdown of bilateral allocations, including ODA earmarked through the multilateral development system.
Learn more by exploring the DAC members’ use of the multilateral system dashboard.
In 2024, Hungary’s bilateral spending declined compared to the previous year. It provided USD 167.7 million of gross bilateral ODA (which includes earmarked contributions to multilateral organisations). This represented a decrease of 26.9% in real terms from 2023.
In 2024, country programmable aid amounted to USD 66.6 million, or 39.7% of Hungary’s gross bilateral ODA, compared to the DAC country average of 46.5%.
Hungary’s in-donor refugee costs amounted to USD 500 thousand (0.3% of gross bilateral ODA) in 2024, while humanitarian aid was USD 1.5 million, or 1% of gross bilateral ODA.
In 2024, Hungary channelled its bilateral ODA mainly through universities, research institutes or think tanks and public sector. Technical co-operation made up 48.6% of gross ODA in 2024.
In 2024, CSOs received USD 1 million of gross bilateral ODA, of which 65.6% was directed to developing country-based CSOs. Overall, 100% of gross bilateral ODA was allocated to CSOs as earmarked contributions and 0.6% was channelled through CSOs to implement projects initiated by the provider (earmarked funding). From 2023 to 2024, the contributions for CSOs decreased as a share of bilateral ODA, from 6.5% to 0.6%.
Learn more by reading the DAC Recommendation on Enabling Civil Society in Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Aid and by exploring the ODA to civil society organisations dashboard.
In 2024, Hungary’s bilateral ODA primarily focused on Asia (excluding the Middle East). USD 77.1 million was allocated to Asia (excluding the Middle East) and USD 45.3 million to countries in Africa, accounting respectively for 45.9% and 27% of gross bilateral ODA. USD 20.8 million was allocated to the Middle East. ODA-eligible countries in Europe were the main regional recipient of Hungary’s earmarked contributions to multilateral organisations.
In 2024, 56.6% of gross bilateral ODA went to Hungary’s top 10 recipients. The top 10 recipients are spread across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, and vary from year to year, as Hungary does not have a list of key partner countries. The share of gross bilateral ODA not allocated by country was 0.6%, of which 50.9% consisted of expenditures for processing and hosting refugees in provider countries.
In 2024, Hungary allocated 0.02% of its GNI to the LDCs. Hungary allocated the highest share of gross bilateral ODA (52.3%) to lower middle-income countries in 2024, noting that 0.6% was unallocated by income group. LDCs received 22.5% of Hungary’s gross bilateral ODA (USD 37.8 million). Additionally, Hungary allocated 34.3% of gross bilateral ODA to land-locked developing countries in 2024, equal to USD 57.6 million.
The distribution of Hungary’s ODA in net terms in relation to “ODA per person in extreme poverty”2 was USD 0.2 in lower middle-income countries and USD 0.3 in upper middle-income countries.
In 2025, Hungary provided USD 2 million of net bilateral ODA to Ukraine to respond to the impacts of the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion, an 85.1% decrease from 2024 in real terms. None of this was provided as humanitarian assistance3.
Support to contexts with high and extreme fragility was USD 64.3 million in 2024, representing 38.4% of Hungary’s gross bilateral ODA. Of this ODA, 1.5% was provided in the form of humanitarian assistance, a decrease from 1.8% in 2023, while 0.2% was allocated to peace, a decrease from 0.8% in 2023. Conflict prevention, a subset of contributions to peace, represented 0.1% of gross bilateral ODA, increasing from 0% in 2023.
Learn more about the States of Fragility platform.
In 2024, more than half of Hungary’s bilateral ODA was allocated to social infrastructure and services. Investments in this area accounted for 78.3% of bilateral ODA commitments (USD 117.5 million), with a strong focus on support to education (USD 103.1 million), health and population (USD 10 million) and government and civil society (USD 3.6 million). ODA for production sectors totalled USD 15.3 million, with a focus on agriculture, forestry, fishing (USD 15.3 million). Economic infrastructure and services amounted to USD 8 million (5.3% of bilateral ODA). Earmarked contributions to multilateral organisations also focused on social sectors and other macro sectors in 2024.
In the period 2023-2024, Hungary committed 3.1% of screened bilateral allocable ODA to gender equality and women’s empowerment compared to 25.5% in 2021-2022 and a DAC average of 48.2% in 2023-2024. This is equal to USD 1.1 million of screened bilateral allocable ODA in support of gender equality on average per year. In addition:
The share of screened bilateral allocable ODA committed to gender equality and women’s empowerment as a principal objective was 1.7% in 2023-2024, compared with the DAC average of 4.2%.
Hungary includes gender equality objectives in 25.3% of ODA for humanitarian aid, above the 2023-2024 DAC average of 21.5%.
Hungary screens less than half of bilateral allocable ODA against the DAC gender equality policy marker (20.1% in 2023-2024).
Learn more by reading the DAC Recommendation on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of All Women and Girls in Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Assistance and the DAC Recommendation on Ending Sexual Exploitation in Development Co-operation, and by exploring the development finance for gender equality dashboard.
In 2023-2024, Hungary committed 10.3% of its total bilateral allocable ODA (USD 18 million) in support of the environment and the Rio Conventions, up from 4.3% in 2021-2022. The DAC average was 39%. In addition:
32.8% of screened bilateral allocable ODA focused on environmental issues as a principal objective, compared with the DAC average of 11.2%.
4.5% of total bilateral allocable ODA (USD 7.9 million) focused on climate change overall (the DAC average was 35.4%), up from 2.5% in 2021-2022.
16.5% of screened bilateral allocable ODA (USD 6.4 million) focused on biodiversity overall (the DAC average was 8.6%), up from 0.1% in 2021-2022.
3.5% of screened bilateral allocable ODA (USD 1.4 million) focused on desertification overall (the DAC average was 4.2%), up from 1.8% in 2021-2022.
Learn more about the DAC Declaration on Aligning Development Co-operation with the Goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
In 2024, Hungary:
Allocated 5.9% of its bilateral ODA (USD 10 million) to core poverty-reducing sectors as defined by Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1.a.1. This indicator captures grants to basic social services (such as basic health and education, water supply and sanitation, multisector aid for basic social services) and development food aid. In addition, 0.3% of bilateral ODA (USD 600 thousand) went to social protection support. Learn more by exploring the Reducing poverty and inequalities through ODA data explainer.
Regarding the payment of local tax and customs duties for ODA-funded goods and services, Hungary does not have a general policy nor does it make information available on the OECD Digital Transparency Hub on the Tax Treatment of ODA.
Committed USD 23.3 million (15.6% of its bilateral allocable ODA) to promote aid for trade and improve developing countries’ trade performance and integration into the world economy in 2024. Learn more by exploring the Aid for Trade dashboard.
In 2024, total official and private flows from Hungary to developing countries amounted to USD 540.4 million in net terms. Official sources accounted for USD 204.6 million, while USD 335.8 million originated from private sources.
Total official support for sustainable development (TOSSD) is an international statistical standard that monitors and increases the transparency of all official and officially supported resources for financing the SDGs received by developing countries (Pillar 1) and for addressing global challenges (Pillar 2). In 2024, activities reported by Hungary as TOSSD totalled USD 225 million, marking a 43% decrease compared with the previous year. Hungary’s TOSSD activities mostly targeted SDG 4 (quality education), SDG 17 (partnerships for the Goals) and SDG 15 (life on land).
Activity-level data on TOSSD by recipient are available at: https://tossd.online.
Reforms in 2022 and 2023 have streamlined institutional responsibilities. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) is responsible for the planning, co-ordination and implementation of Hungary’s development co-operation and humanitarian assistance policy, while the Hungary Helps Agency is the main implementing agency. The entry into force of the Hungary Helps Program Act on 1 January 2024 consolidated Hungary’s humanitarian and development responsibilities under the MFAT. The Export‑Import Bank Plc. and the Hungarian Export Credit Insurance Plc. (MEHIB) are responsible for tied aid loans. The Tempus Foundation runs the Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship programme. Other line ministries and government entities also engage in development co-operation activities as implementing and/or financing agencies. An inter-ministerial platform supports co-ordination and facilitates the exchange of information.
Around 150 staff members work at MFAT headquarters and the different agencies on development co‑operation programmes, while economic diplomats in embassies are responsible for links with partner countries.
There is no particular mechanism for consulting stakeholders, but Hungary held consultations with stakeholders on its development co-operation strategy. CSOs active in development co-operation, humanitarian assistance and global citizenship education co-ordinate through the umbrella body, the Hungarian Association of NGOs for Development and Humanitarian Aid.
The Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development placed a renewed emphasis on strengthening the effectiveness of all forms of development co-operation by upholding and elevating the Effectiveness Principles. Adherence to these principles is measured through the partner country-led monitoring exercise of the Global Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation (GPEDC).
Notes: The global aggregate results of the 4th GPEDC monitoring round (2023-2026) will be published in the forthcoming 2026 GPEDC Global Monitoring Report. Learn more about partner countries’ participation, progress and country-specific results by exploring the GPEDC Global Dashboard. CRS: Creditor Reporting System; IATI: International Aid Transparency Initiative.
Internal systems and processes help ensure the delivery of Hungary’s development co-operation. The table below highlights select features.
Access the full list of development co-operation providers at: Development Co-operation Profiles.
2022 OECD-DAC Peer Review of Hungary: https://doi.org/10.1787/ec7d67f1-en.
CSO umbrella organisation HAND – Hungarian Association of NGOs for Development and Humanitarian Aid: http://hand.org.hu.
Hungary Helps Agency: https://hungaryhelps.gov.hu/hungary-helps-program-main-page.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade: https://nefe.kormany.hu/en.
Summary of Hungary’s International Development Cooperation Strategy for the period 2020-2025: https://nefe.kormany.hu/download/5/a8/a2000/NEFE2025_summary_en.pdf.
Hungary has been a member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) since 2016.
The methodological notes provide further details on the definitions and statistical methodologies applied, including the grant-equivalent methodology, core and earmarked contributions to multilateral organisations, country programmable aid, channels of delivery, bilateral ODA unspecified/unallocated, bilateral allocable ODA, the gender equality policy marker, and the environment markers.
This work is published under the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Member countries of the OECD.
This document, as well as any data and map included herein, are without prejudice to the status of or sovereignty over any territory, to the delimitation of international frontiers and boundaries and to the name of any territory, city or area.
The statistical data for Israel are supplied by and under the responsibility of the relevant Israeli authorities. The use of such data by the OECD is without prejudice to the status of the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank under the terms of international law.
Note by the Republic of Türkiye
The information in this document with reference to “Cyprus” relates to the southern part of the Island. There is no single authority representing both Turkish and Greek Cypriot people on the Island. Türkiye recognises the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Until a lasting and equitable solution is found within the context of the United Nations, Türkiye shall preserve its position concerning the “Cyprus issue”.
Note by all the European Union Member States of the OECD and the European Union
The Republic of Cyprus is recognised by all members of the United Nations with the exception of Türkiye. The information in this document relates to the area under the effective control of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus.
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← 1. DAC members adopted the grant-equivalent methodology starting from their reporting of 2018 data as a more accurate way to count the donor effort in development loans. See the methodological notes for further details.
← 2. Aid per person in extreme poverty is calculated by dividing net ODA (bilateral and imputed multilateral) by the population in extreme poverty in each country. It estimates how much ODA each person in extreme poverty would receive if total ODA was divided evenly among the extreme poor. This metric does not measure the amount of ODA actually received by each person in extreme poverty, nor does it measure how much ODA goes to poverty reduction. It instead highlights patterns in total ODA allocations relative to the number of people living in extreme poverty in each country. Group averages are calculated based on a weighted average of aid per person in extreme poverty and the number of people in extreme poverty for each country in the group. See the methodological notes for further details.
← 3. Hungary did not provide complete data for ODA to Ukraine in their submission of preliminary 2025 data