The United Nations Child Fund (UNICEF) reported around 10 million children in Afghanistan need humanitarian assistance to survive, saying a lack of access to sufficient food, medicine and drinking water are the challenges that Afghan children face.
According to UNICEF, due to a lack of access to basic needs, many children are so malnourished they must lie in hospital beds.
UNICEF said if the current situation continues, one million children under 5 in Afghanistan will suffer from severe acute malnutrition.
“Today in Afghanistan there are nearly 10 million children in urgent need of humanitarian aid. Those least responsible for this crisis are paying the highest price. There are children within communities without access to water because of the drought. There are children missing out on critical vaccines,” said Sam Mort, chief of communications for UNICEF in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, a number of displaced families said their children are vulnerable.
Gulsom and her family came to Kabul a month ago from Kunduz province. She says they do not have enough food or water and do not have a place to live. She says life is very difficult for her children.
“I have a one-year-old daughter, but her physical status is very bad due to lack of food,” she said.
Her husband, Hamid, said one of his children is sick and he cannot afford to buy medicine. “We are very worried about what will happen to our children. Will he recover? There is no medicine, no doctor,” he added.
The displaced families said they cannot afford to provide basic needs for their children. “The children need clothes and food. When there is no food and no clothes, the United Nations should help us,” said Shahla, a displaced woman.
Meanwhile, a number of doctors say that cases of malnourished children have increased in the past month.
Mohammad Latif Baher, head of the Indira Gandhi Children Hospital in Kabul, said: “With the recent changes, the number of patients coming to our hospital has increased.”
“If the international community does not pay attention to the people of Afghanistan, especially the children, Afghanistan will witness a human crisis,” said Zarqa Yaftali, a children’s rights activist said.
