The United Nations in Afghanistan has called on the international donor community to maintain critical support for the 22.9 million Afghan people in need of assistance this year.
According to a statement issued by the organization on Monday, the only way for the Afghan people to escape the cycle of poverty and suffering is for their urgent needs to be addressed.
The appeal for the country, which is the world’s second-largest humanitarian crisis today, comes ahead of meetings in Istanbul this week of the Afghanistan Coordination Group (ACG), which brings together Member State donor representatives, International Financial Institutions and the UN in Afghanistan.
Indrika Ratwatte, the UN’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Afghanistan said in the statement: “If we want to help the Afghan people escape the vicious cycle of poverty and suffering, we must continue to have the means to address urgent needs while simultaneously laying the groundwork for long-term resilience and stability.
“Despite complex challenges in delivering assistance to the Afghan people, we must continue to make the gradual transition from life-saving assistance to sustainable solutions that address the root causes of vulnerability. This is critical for Afghanistan, the region, and the world ,” he said.
In 2024, humanitarian and basic human needs partners raised a collective $3.21 billion in support of the Afghan people, exceeding funding levels of the previous year.
Contributions by donors enabled the UN and its partners to deliver concrete results in life-saving humanitarian assistance, sustain essential services and strengthen the resilience of Afghans, including women and girls, as highlighted in the UN’s Annual Results Report for Afghanistan for 2024, released to coincide with the ACG meeting.
The UN warned however that the global funding crisis and its dramatic impact on humanitarian and basic human needs programmes could jeopardize the fragile improvements achieved in stabilizing Afghanistan over the last four years, such as improved food security levels and moderate economic growth.
“Failure to maintain a minimum investment in resilience may lead to negative coping mechanisms of Afghans, including irregular migration as a last resort, exposing them to serious risks and placing additional strain on the region,” the UN stated.
