The Ministry of Public Health said Sunday more than 2,000 people in Kabul die every year of respiratory diseases due to air pollution.

Marking World Climate Change Week in Kabul, titled “Climate, Health and Justice”, officials said that due to air pollution, thousands of people suffer from respiratory, heart, cancer, infectious and viral diseases every year.

“Every year at least 2,287 people of Kabul die due to respiratory diseases caused by air pollution,” said Hassan Ghiasi, Deputy Minister of Public Health.

Abdul Salam Hanafi, the second deputy of the Prime Minister, meanwhile said that the government is committed to improving the situation and by preventing more pollution in the country.

“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is committed to creating a national policy for Afghanistan’s environmental management,” Hanafi said.

In addition, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, political deputy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that frequent wars in the country, deforestation and excessive use of underground water have had negative effects on the country’s environment.

“The problem that the people of Afghanistan face is not only our responsibility, but the world also has a duty to cooperate with us in this area, because the world is also responsible for the air pollution in Afghanistan,” he said.

Hafiz Aziz-ul-Rahman, the head of the Environmental Protection Department, has also noted that climate change has disrupted the social life of the people and agriculture in the country.

Sources of air pollution in Kabul meanwhile include old cars, poor quality fuel, people burning trash, industrial brick kilns, small-scale smelting plants and foundries. That’s in addition to pollution coming from bakeries, restaurants and wedding halls as well as power plants, generators, household cooking stoves and heaters.