Facing a deadly hunger crisis and climate shocks, Afghanistan pleads for urgent global aid as droughts, economic collapse and mass migration leave millions on the edge.
Afghanistan is on the brink of a full-blown humanitarian catastrophe, as hunger, displacement, and drought converge into a relentless crisis that is intensifying by the day. The World Food Programme (WFP) has raised the alarm about the worsening hunger emergency, citing a devastating combination of economic collapse, prolonged drought, and a surge in returning migrants that is stretching the country’s already fragile systems to breaking point.
The United Nations’ food agency estimates that nearly USD 540 million is urgently needed to sustain operations over the next six months. Ziauddin Safi, WFP’s communications officer in Afghanistan, warned that millions of lives depend on the agency’s ability to continue reaching the country’s most vulnerable people — especially women, children, and those recently repatriated from neighbouring nations.
“For the next six months, the World Food Programme in Afghanistan needs nearly 540 million US dollars to carry out its programmes aimed at reaching the most vulnerable Afghans across the country,” Safi reiterated.
Afghanistan’s woes are not just about food, however. A devastating drought, compounded by erratic weather patterns and a failed monsoon, has slashed crop yields, decimated livestock, and undermined what little food security remained. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), below-average rainfall and dry soil have caused large-scale rain-fed wheat failure across several provinces, while livestock losses due to fodder shortages now loom.
The worst-affected provinces include Badghis, Ghor, Faryab, Sar-e Pol, Samangan, Baghlan, Takhar, Badakhshan, Daikundi, Bamyan, Parwan, and Kabul, where climate extremes are hitting farmers hard. Herat is reportedly the only province to have returned to relatively normal conditions, according to the Khaama Press.
Experts warn that even with forecasts of upcoming rainfall in some regions, Afghanistan’s agriculture may not recover in time to prevent mass food insecurity. Rural communities, already battered by war and economic shocks, are at risk of total collapse without immediate external support.
As humanitarian agencies scramble for resources, there are rising calls within Afghanistan for a shift from short-term aid to long-term development investment. Mir Shaker Yaqubi, an expert in economic affairs, stressed that while emergency aid is vital, it must be channelled into projects that create sustainable growth. “These aids are humanitarian and prevent a serious crisis, but they cannot in any way be considered as a fundamental solution to Afghanistan’s economic problems,” Yaqubi said.
Another expert, Sayed Masood, contended that the root of Afghanistan’s fragility is political, not merely economic. “In reality, Afghanistan’s crisis is a political one, especially with the current global and regional engagement, which is preventing developmental projects from moving forward,” he said, hinting at the geopolitical isolation Afghanistan faces under Taliban rule.
Even Afghanistan’s Ministry of Economy acknowledges the urgency of sustained international support. Deputy Minister Abdul Latif Nazari appealed to humanitarian agencies and global partners to maintain assistance efforts, particularly in the face of mass returns of Afghan migrants expelled from neighbouring countries like Pakistan and Iran.
“Humanitarian aid is a serious and essential need under the current circumstances, particularly with the return of migrants from neighbouring countries,” he said.
The displacement crisis is compounding urban strain, especially in Kabul, where over 40 percent of Afghanistan’s urban population now lives, many in informal settlements. According to UN-Habitat, four in five Kabul residents live in precarious housing without proper infrastructure, making them dangerously exposed to climate change-induced weather events and public health risks.
Returnees often end up in these same settlements, where basic services like healthcare, sanitation, and water are virtually absent. UN-Habitat warned that Kabul’s “fragile housing situation has become both a humanitarian and environmental challenge.”
The agency called for urgent investment to improve climate resilience, urban infrastructure, and essential services, stating that without such measures, millions of Afghans would remain trapped in “cycles of risk and deprivation.”
The UN had earlier requested more than USD 2 billion in humanitarian aid to assist some 23 million Afghans, highlighting the vast scale of the crisis.
As the world watches from a distance, Afghanistan’s hunger and displacement crises are growing into what could be one of the most acute humanitarian disasters of the decade. Aid is running dry, drought is relentless, and without swift international response, the suffering of Afghanistan’s most vulnerable — especially women and children — may only deepen.
