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Many women cut off from aid following IEA ban on female NGO workers: Save the Children
Almost two months since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) issued a decree banning Afghan women from working for non-government organizations (NGOs), many women and children are missing out on life-saving aid during the most severe winter in more than a decade and worst hunger crisis in Afghanistan on record, Save the Children said on Wednesday.
Save the Children said that it paused activities in the wake of the ban because female staff are essential for the safe and effective delivery of services and are crucial for reaching women and girls. In addition, almost half of Save the Children’s workforce in Afghanistan are women.
Although some activities have restarted where assurances have been received from the IEA authorities for female staff to safely resume work, mainly in health and education, more than 50% of Save the Children’s operations are still on hold, including essential cash distributions that help families meet basic needs, water, sanitation and hygiene activities and child protection services.
“The scale and severity of the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Almost 20 million children and adults are facing extreme hunger. Many families now only survive on bread and water for weeks at a time,” said David Wright, Save the Children’s Chief Operating Officer.
“Children are struggling to survive a freezing, miserable winter. Some are dying as temperatures plummet well below -20 degrees Celsius. Heating homes is out of the question for ordinary families and parents cannot even afford blankets or warm winter clothes,” he added.
He called on the IEA to completely reverse the ban and allow NGOs to fully resume activities with female and male staff.
“We also call on all humanitarian agencies in Afghanistan to ensure all activities are conducted with female and male teams, and urge donor countries to refrain from any commitments to reduce or freeze much needed flexible funding for Afghanistan,” Wright said. “This is not the time for the international community, and donor governments in particular, to turn their backs on Afghanistan.”
Pakistan on Friday summoned Afghan Deputy Head of Mission in Islamabad to convey “strong demarche” over a deadly attack on a military camp in North Waziristan District that killed four Pakistani soldiers.
In a statement, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the attack was carried out by a faction of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The statement said that Pakistan conveyed “grave concern over the continued support and facilitation” provided by the Islamic Emirate to TTP.
Pakistan has demanded “a full investigation and decisive action against the perpetrators and facilitators of the terrorist attacks launched against Pakistan from Afghan soil.”
It urged the Islamic Emirate “to take immediate, concrete and verifiable measures against all terror groups operating from its territory, including their leadership, and deny the continued use of Afghan soil for terrorism against Pakistan.
According to the statement, the Islamic Emirate has been “categorically informed that Pakistan reserves the right to defend its sovereignty and protect its citizens, and will take all necessary measures to respond to terrorism originating from Afghan soil.”
Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that attacks in the country are originated from Afghan soil, a charge the Islamic Emirate denies.
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev has underscored Afghanistan’s continued importance in regional cooperation, saying the country remains one of the key areas of interaction among regional partners.
Addressing the first summit of the “Central Asia Plus Japan” dialogue, Mirziyoyev said participating countries share a common aspiration to see Afghanistan become peaceful, stable, and oriented toward meaningful development.
The Uzbek president praised Japan’s longstanding and consistent support for Afghanistan, noting that Tokyo has for many years been among the leading donors and partners assisting the Afghan people.
He expressed confidence that coordinated efforts and joint contributions by regional countries and Japan would help improve living standards in Afghanistan, advance socio-economic and infrastructure development, and facilitate the country’s active involvement in regional economic projects.
The Embassy of Japan in Afghanistan announced on Friday that the country has allocated $19.5 million in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.
In a statement, the Japanese Embassy said it hopes the aid will help bring positive change to the lives of vulnerable Afghans.
According to the statement, the assistance will cover the basic humanitarian needs of vulnerable communities in Afghanistan.
The embassy added that the aid will be delivered through United Nations agencies, international organizations, and Japanese non-governmental organizations operating in Afghanistan.
Japan’s total assistance to Afghanistan since August 2021 has reached more than $549 million.
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