More than half a million people in Afghanistan were displaced due to climate disasters in 2024, the International Organization for Migration said in a country report published on Tuesday.

“Nearly 9 million individuals were impacted by climate hazards in the last 12 months, with over 500,000 displaced by floods, drought, and other disasters,” IOM said, AFP reported.

“Roughly three in five of those displaced relocated elsewhere within their province of origin”, with the western Herat and Farah provinces among the hardest hit, it said.

This week, 39 people were killed due to floods, hail and storms in southwestern Afghanistan, mainly in Farah, according to local authorities.

Afghanistan is among the poorest countries in the world after decades of war and is ranked the sixth most vulnerable to climate change, which is spurring extreme weather.

Drought, floods, land degradation and declining agricultural productivity are key threats, according to the United Nations.

Flash floods last May killed hundreds and swamped swaths of agricultural land in Afghanistan, where 80 percent of people depend on farming to survive.

“Over 11 million people in Afghanistan are at high risk of severe impacts from climate-induced disasters in the future,” the IOM said.

The UN agency estimates that “climate-sensitive livelihoods, like subsistence farming, make up 73 percent of jobs in Afghanistan”.

It added that “92 percent of villages have limited access to emergency services” and “96 percent lack resources for crucial measures like early warning systems and search and rescue.”

Officials from the disaster management departments of Farah and Kandahar report that floods in these two provinces have resulted in 29 fatalities and nine injuries.

Mohammad Israel Sayar, the head of disaster management in Farah, confirmed to Ariana News that 21 people lost their lives and six others were injured due to floods on Tuesday in the Qala-e-Kah district of the province.

According to Sayar, the victims had gone to the mountains of Qala-e-Kah for recreation purposes when floodwaters suddenly swept them away.

Officials from the disaster management department in Kandahar also stated that floods in the province have caused 11 deaths and injuries.

They reported that in the seventh district of the province, one woman and three children died when the roof of a house collapsed.

They added that in the fifth security district of the province, three women and one child lost their lives due to the floods. Two children and one man were also injured.

The National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) said on Sunday that air pollution in Afghanistan has decreased this year compared to last year.

Zainul Abedin Abed, the agency’s deputy director for policy and expertise, said in a press conference that in the past three months, Kabul authorities took 4,211 vehicles off the road that were releasing excessive emissions.

He also stressed that the world should not politicize the issue of climate change and that developed countries should pay “compensation” to poor countries to help mitigate the effects of climate change.

“Compensation should be taken from developed countries and compensation should be paid to the affected countries. The withdrawal of the Americans or Donald Trump from the Paris Agreement is a violation of human principles. Climate change is a human issue. There must be engagement on this issue. Instead of political considerations, engagement should be opted,” Abed said.

Officials from the National Environmental Protection Agency also said that aid to fight the effects of climate change has not been cut.

“As far as we know, mostly humanitarian aid has been cut off, but projects in the environment and climate change sectors have not been impacted,” said Rohullah Amin, head of climate change department at the National Environmental Protection Agency.

NEPA officials also said that in cooperation with other government agencies, a six-month action plan has been developed to prevent the increase of air pollution.

According to officials, since the Islamic Emirate’s return to power in 2021, the agency has held 3,000 awareness programs to reduce air pollution, in which more than 500,000 people have participated.

Officials at the agency also called on Kabul residents to refrain from using fuel that causes air pollution.

However, a number of Kabul residents complain about the increase in air pollution in recent days and ask the authorities to take more practical measures.

Air pollution in Kabul has always been a source of concern for the residents of the city.