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UN agency warns of ‘imminent’ famine in Afghanistan
Afghanistan is at risk of “imminent hunger” with winter approaching and services disrupted by the return to power of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), a UN official warned in an interview with AFP.
Natalia Kanem, director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said via video that the situation in the country was dire.
“It would not be an exaggeration to say” that at least a third of Afghanistan’s population of around 33 million is affected by “imminent hunger,” Kanem warned.
Harsh winters, disrupting the ability to transport supplies to isolated areas of the mountainous country, plus the coronavirus pandemic will aggravate an already complicated situation, she added.
“There is a lot of anxiety over how we’re going to deliver health care, where the next meal is going to come from,” Kanem said.
She also warned that women and girls would bear the worst of it.
“It is urgent, for women and girls in particular who were already suffering. This is one of the countries with the highest death during childbirth and pregnancy rates.
“We cannot underscore enough that even during a transitional period, women and girls have human rights and these are to be respected,” she said.
Kanem repeated calls made by the international community to the IEA and said: “The women of Afghanistan have made clear over years that they want their education, they want their health care, and that they’re also ready, willing and able to design programs and to be able to lead in their communities,” she said.
IEA leaders have assured the international community that they are more moderate than when they ruled previously.
They have promised to change, saying they will respect women’s rights within the framework of Sharia law.
Kanem pointed out that in a country ravaged by decades of conflict, many women, particularly in areas most affected by violence, are the sole breadwinners.
“We’re all anxiously hoping that there will be regularity and ability of delivery of goods” to people in small communities where many of the UNPFA’s staff are women, she said.
“We have said that we want to be able to maintain a functioning health system.
“(It’s) pretty challenging right now with the airport having been closed, with certain professionals who have left the country,” Kanem added.
She warned that if the health system breaks down, that’s going to spell “complete disaster,” but added that for the most part the agency’s family health centers have remained open.
The UN on Wednesday released $45 million in emergency aid to support Afghanistan’s health system.
Pakistan, Iran, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have expressed with Afghanistan after flash floods killed more than 300 people and destroyed hundreds of homes in northern Baghlan province.
“The Government and the people of Pakistan express their heartfelt condolences on the tragic loss of life and widespread damage to property caused by heavy rains and flash floods in several provinces of Afghanistan,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement. “Pakistan stands in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan during this difficult time.”
Qatar’s foreign ministry said: “The State of Qatar expresses its full solidarity with Afghanistan in face of the destruction caused by massive floods hitting the Baghlan province north of the country, which resulted in deaths and injuries.”
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses the State of Qatar’s firm support to Afghanistan and its brotherly people, and voiced its complete readiness to cooperate with the relevant authorities in Afghanistan to provide all means to help overcome crises,” it added.
UAE’s Foreign Ministry also expressed “its sincere condolences and sympathy with the friendly people of Afghanistan, and to the families of the victims, as well as its wishes for a speedy recovery for all the injured.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expresses his solidarity with the people of Afghanistan.
“The United Nations and its partners in Afghanistan are coordinating with the de facto authorities to swiftly assess needs and provide emergency assistance,” he said.
The Japanese ambassador in Kabul, Takayoshi Kuromiya, met Saturday with Sader Azam Osmani, the Deputy of the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock, the meeting discussed Japan’s cooperation in these areas.
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations (MoRR) held Saturday an emergency meeting in Kabul attended by the humanitarian aid coordinator of the International Organization for Migration to instantly address the needs of recent flood victims in Baghlan province.
The ministry quoted Abdul Rahman Rahmani, head of the assistance coordination of the ministry, as saying that the goal of the meeting was to provide emergency assistance to flood victims and how to consider first aid.
According to reports, intense floods in Baghlan’s many districts have left hundreds of dead and injured.
The ministry stated that hundreds of houses have been destroyed and people are living in open space in the mountains.
Meanwhile, the ministry added that the figures are not yet final and the process of rescue operations is still ongoing with the cooperation of health teams.
At the meeting, Mohammad Omar Hashemi, the humanitarian aid coordinator of the International Organization for Migration, also assured that the organization is ready to provide urgent aid to the victims.
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