Afghan women and children pay the price as crises converge and funding shrinks

“WFP has been sounding alarm bells for months,” said Skau. “This week I met malnourished mothers and children who travelled for over two hours to reach a WFP-supported clinic in Hisar Shahi camp, only to be turned away because we have no nutritious supplements left to give them. What I saw in eastern Afghanistan is happening across the country and it is heartbreaking and totally unacceptable.”

Afghanistan is already facing near-record malnutrition, with nearly five million mothers and children affected. Pressures are mounting: the closure of the border with Pakistan, repeated floods and earthquakes, and a steep drop in humanitarian funding. 

The crisis is compounded by spillover from the Middle East conflict. Soaring global fuel prices and disrupted supply routes are pushing WFP’s severely underfunded operations in Afghanistan to the brink, leaving thousands of mothers and children without the life-saving support they urgently need. 

“We are also seeing vulnerable families crossing the border from Pakistan in growing numbers; many of them coming to a country where they know no one, have no place to go and have no idea where their next meal will come from,” said Skau, who visited the Torkham crossing point at the Pakistan border. “I met single mothers and families with young babies — all of whom crossed with nothing more than what they can carry. They need food, shelter, safety and immediate support.” 

Over the past several months, Afghanistan has seen an influx of returnees from Pakistan. Last year, nearly 2.8 million people returned from Pakistan and Iran, and this year has already seen an additional 500,000 returnees. Families are coming back to a country already stretched to breaking point, moving into host communities who are themselves struggling. 

“WFP is doing everything it can to support as many people as possible, but the funds are just not enough,” said Skau. “We are opening new supply corridors, targeting the most vulnerable people and working closely with other UN agencies and partners. But without urgent donor support and the passage of humanitarian cargo through key border points, these extraordinary efforts will fall desperately short of preventing a humanitarian disaster for millions of mothers and children.”

WFP urgently needs USD 350 million for the next six months for its life-saving operations in Afghanistan. 

Note to the editor:
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