UN emergency experts call for urgent humanitarian action in Afghanistan

A call for urgent support to life-saving humanitarian action in Afghanistan was made by a group of emergency experts on Friday.

A group of eight senior emergency experts from UN agencies and international non-governmental organizations gave their recommendations after a five-day mission to the country.

"According to our humanitarian colleagues, more than 24 million people, which represent 59 per cent of the Afghan population, now require lifesaving assistance in the country. That is a staggering 30 per cent increase since 2021," said a UN official in a press briefing.

"The Afghanistan humanitarian response plan this year, which is the largest humanitarian appeal ever launched for a single country, calls for $4.44 billion to provide aid to over 22 million people. It's only 13 per cent funded," the official added.

Earlier this month, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) reported that "record drought, rising food prices, internal displacement" as well as economic breakdown and collapse of public services constitute a "humanitarian emergency," citing numbers from UN World Food Programme.