The United Nations’ World Food Programme has announced it will drop another two million people from food assistance in Afghanistan, as the country faces its third consecutive year of a devastating drought that is putting food and water out of reach, said Save the Children.

Arshad Malik, Save the Children Country Director in Afghanistan, said: “Children and their families in Afghanistan are at breaking point after years of drought and economic crisis. In a recent survey we conducted in some provinces, three-quarters of children (76.1%) said they were eating less than they were last yea r, and we found that more and more children are being pushed into unsafe situations like child labour as their families struggle to cope.

“As international governments gather in Brussels next week to discuss Afghanistan, we call on them to uphold their obligations and commitments to the people of Afghanistan.

“It is genuinely frightening to think about what further misery these cuts will inflict on children. Now is not the time to walk away. More funding is needed, not less. Without more money the aid response will be crippled, meaning more hungry, malnourished and sick children.”

Malik said time is running out for the children of Afghanistan. “The international community must act to stop more children being pushed from hunger crisis into catastrophe.”

He also said that the UK’s decision to slash aid to Afghanistan by almost 60% this year could not have come at a worse time. “Save the Children is calling on the Government to urgently increase funding for lifesaving support and resume long-term development funding to ensure children’s basic needs for health and education are met,” Malik said.