The aid that the United Nations is set to provide to Afghanistan and Afghan refugees in neighboring countries will cost at least $5.1 billion in 2022 as the country faces severe humanitarian crises, according to a key U.N. agency.
The U.N. Office for Emergency Relief (OCHA) announced in Geneva on Tuesday that this is the largest humanitarian appeal the United Nations has ever made for a country.
"Without support, tens of thousands of children risk dying from malnutrition because the most basic health services have collapsed," OCHA said.
According to U.N. figures, 4.7 million people in Afghanistan are expected to suffer from severe malnutrition this year, including 3.9 million children. Without additional aid, 131,000 children are at risk of starvation, it said.
"A huge humanitarian disaster is looming," said U.N. emergency relief coordinator Martin Griffiths. Such appeals for donations are primarily directed at governments and foundations.
The United States announced an additional $308 million in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan on Tuesday.
"This contribution reflects a continued scale up of the United States’ humanitarian assistance in alignment with an unwavering commitment to aid vulnerable Afghans, and this new funding brings total U.S. humanitarian aid in Afghanistan and to Afghan refugees in the region to nearly $782 million since October 2021," National Security Council spokesperson Emily Horne announced.
She made it clear that the funds would not flow through the Taliban government, but through independent aid organizations.
Afghanistan's economy collapsed after the chaotic withdrawal of the U.S. and its allies amid the takeover by the Taliban in August.
The old government had received about $8.5 billion in military and civilian aid annually, but foreign donors cut this off after the Taliban's takeover. Aid money had financed about 75% of government spending, including the health and education systems.
Many donors now find themselves in a dilemma. They do not want to help the Taliban stabilize their regime – which oppresses women, disregards human rights and excludes other political forces. According to observers, however, the suspension of aid and sanctions mainly affects the population.
The United Nations needs around $4.4 billion for humanitarian aid to support 22 million people in the country itself. This includes food aid, support for farmers, health services, emergency shelters, clean water supply and schools.
In addition, almost 6 million Afghans and their hosts in five neighboring countries, including Pakistan and Iran, are to be supported.
Since no money will go directly to the Taliban, aid organizations will play an increasingly important role. The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) warned on Tuesday of difficulties in implementing U.N. aid. Providing money is of little help if "the outside world and the Taliban government do not work quickly to ensure that cash is available in the country," NRC head Jan Egeland said.
Aid agencies are having massive difficulties getting money into Afghanistan. With the Taliban takeover, international remittances into the country through the SWIFT banking network system have been suspended.
Billions of dollars in reserves parked abroad by the Afghan central bank were also frozen, stopping regular cash deliveries to the country. At the end of December, the U.N. and the U.S. decided on exemptions from the sanctions regime in view of the worsening humanitarian crisis.
The NRC said on Tuesday that it was still unable to arrange a normal transfer of money to the country. The search for a secure, permanent solution is ongoing, it said.
Fundraising appeals for Afghanistan in 2021 were among the most successful in the U.N. system. About 88% of the original calculated need of nearly $870 million was met. An additional emergency appeal of $606.3 million was even significantly exceeded, totaling $823 million.
Globally, the U.N. is preparing help for 274 million people in need this year, up from 250 million in 2021.