The United Nations warned on Tuesday that the number of people facing acute food insecurity in Afghanistan is expected to climb above 19 million during the coming winter. The UN’s humanitarian agency, OCHA, said the crisis is also projected to affect millions of young children in 2027.
OCHA said more than four million babies and children under six will need treatment for acute malnutrition next year. Between September and October, 15.9 million people, nearly one in three Afghans, were already facing crisis-level food insecurity or worse, including 3.4 million in emergency conditions, the agency said. The situation is set to worsen further during the winter lean season, which runs from November to April.
Projected rise in hunger and child malnutrition
OCHA’s Afghanistan spokeswoman, Olga Cherevko, said the number could rise to 19.2 million, with five million people expected to face emergency levels of hunger. She described this as “one step away from famine.”
Cherevko said more than one million of the children needing treatment are expected to suffer severe acute malnutrition. Speaking to a press briefing in Geneva from Kabul, she said the figures reflect children whose parents cannot afford nutritious food, and families whose ability to cope has been eroded by years of conflict, economic hardship, drought and other shocks.
She urged action before winter sets in. Her call included getting food aid to those in need, protecting livestock and productive assets, supporting farmers before key planting windows close, and keeping essential health, nutrition and water services open.
Nutrition sites closing as international aid falls
Around one third of nutrition sites across the country have closed or suspended services, which Cherevko linked to “largely due to funding cuts.” She warned that if these services disappear, the consequences could be irreversible, particularly for children.
Afghanistan has seen a sharp drop in international aid since 2021, when the Taliban returned to power. The Taliban have imposed a severe version of Islamic law, including rules that limit women’s access to education and public life. The Taliban government remains largely excluded from the international community, which criticises its repressive measures.
The UN said it had received less than 30 percent of the funding needed for life-saving assistance as of late August. Several natural disasters, along with the forced return of millions of Afghans from Iran and Pakistan since 2023, have further worsened the humanitarian situation.
Access, affordability and this year’s harvest
Cherevko said humanitarian aid can save lives but cannot indefinitely make up for the absence of economic opportunity and public services. She added that the food crisis is not only about whether food is available, but also whether people can access and afford it.
Better rainfall and agricultural production this year have helped. However, the UN said one good harvest “cannot undo the damage of several years of drought.”
