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6 months on: Humanitarian situation in Afghanistan deteriorating

Países
Afganistán
Fuentes
Medair
Fecha de publicación

Lausanne, Switzerland, February 11, 2022 – Six months on from the August 15 takeover, the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate. The economy is collapsing, food prices are rising, and an ongoing drought threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of Afghans.

This year, 24.4 million people – or more than half of the total population - will be in need of humanitarian assistance - a six million increase since January 2021. 75% of those in need are women and children. 22.8 million people will suffer from acute food insecurity, with all 34 provinces of Afghanistan facing either crisis or emergency levels of food insecurity. The country’s health care system is also on the brink of collapse.

Medair, an international emergency relief agency active in Afghanistan since 1996, continues to provide urgent assistance in areas such as health and nutrition, access to safe drinking water, and food assistance.

“There has been a clear escalation in humanitarian needs in the past year,” says Ben Reynolds, Medair's Afghanistan Director. “We are seeing this play out in real time here. Just to have something to eat, many people have fallen into debt and sold their belongings, even their children in the most extreme cases.”

Since August 15, 2021, Medair has reached over 50,000 people with food assistance through cash distributions, while mobile health and nutrition teams are screening and treating children for malnutrition. In Southern Afghanistan, the construction of a water tank was successfully completed, providing safe drinking water for local communities.

“Aside from the effects of the conflict, the country is also particularly vulnerable to natural disasters, such as an ongoing drought which has affected some 80% of the country,” adds Reynolds. “And just like the rest of the world, the pandemic has not spared Afghanistan. There is no denying that 2022 is looking bleak - 97% of the population could be living below the poverty line by mid-year. We cannot leave people alone in such desperate circumstances."