UN warns 19.2 million Afghans could face acute food insecurity this winter

The United Nations has warned that 19.2 million people in Afghanistan could face acute food insecurity during the winter lean season from November 2026 to April 2027, including five million people expected to experience emergency levels of hunger.

Olga Cherevko, a UN humanitarian spokesperson in Afghanistan, presented the figures during a press briefing in Geneva on October 20, citing the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis.

She said 15.9 million Afghans, nearly one in three people in the country, faced acute food insecurity at crisis level or worse between September and October, including 3.4 million in emergency conditions.

Cherevko also warned that more than four million children aged six months to five years are projected to need treatment for acute malnutrition next year, including more than one million expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition.

According to the UN official, around one-third of nutrition sites across Afghanistan have closed or suspended services, largely because of funding cuts, raising concerns about the consequences for vulnerable children.

Cherevko said that although improved rainfall and agricultural production have supported this year’s harvest, food remains unaffordable or inaccessible for millions of people. She noted that years of drought, economic hardship and conflict have weakened families’ ability to cope with further shocks.

She stressed that humanitarian assistance remains essential but cannot indefinitely compensate for the lack of economic opportunities and basic public services. She called for sustained investment in agriculture, rural livelihoods, local markets, employment, water systems, and health and nutrition services.

The UN official also highlighted the impact of restrictions on women and girls, warning that excluding them from education and employment undermines household incomes, public services and Afghanistan’s long-term recovery.

She cited UNICEF estimates indicating that, if the restrictions continue, Afghanistan could lose up to 20,000 women teachers and more than 5,000 female health workers by 2030.

Cherevko urged humanitarian organisations and other stakeholders to act before winter, including by delivering food assistance, protecting livestock and other productive assets, supporting farmers ahead of the planting season, and maintaining access to essential health, nutrition and water services.

She said that while humanitarian aid saves lives in the immediate term, sustained and inclusive investment in livelihoods, public services and economic opportunities is essential to help Afghan families become less dependent on emergency assistance.