Australia provides USD 5 million aid to Afghanistan

Kabul [Afghanistan]: Amid the escalating challenges of poverty and unemployment in Afghanistan, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that Australia is providing USD 5 million in humanitarian aid, Khaama Press reported.

The agency stated in a press release on Sunday that Australia has contributed more than USD 5.1 million to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund.

Furthermore, OCHA, the coordinating body for humanitarian aid of the United Nations, has clarified that this amount will be used in the relief and livelihood sectors.

The organization added that following the establishment of the Humanitarian Fund for Afghanistan, the Australian government sent approximately 69 million Australian dollars to the fund.

Previously, the UN OCHA stated in its latest report that an urgent budget of USD 570.7 million is required to provide essential winter necessities for people in need in Afghanistan, Khaama Press reported.

According to OCHA’s statistics, 29.2 million people in Afghanistan need humanitarian assistance, including 21.3 million people enrolled in relief programs.

Additionally, the organization has mentioned that USD 3.23 billion is required for humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan this year. However, as of August, only approximately USD 1 billion has been provided, leaving a shortfall of USD 2.43 billion in the budget, Khaama Press reported.

Earlier, the World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations warned that Afghanistan is one of the 10 nations where approximately two million people are suffering from severe food insecurity, adding that at least 41 million people in Afghanistan face severe acute food insecurity at an alarming level..

Afghanistan, heavily dependent on Western donor support, lost this assistance when the Taliban took over after the US and NATO withdrawal in August 2021. This led to a rapid economic collapse, pushing self-sufficient Afghans to rely on humanitarian aid for survival.