The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has issued an urgent appeal to the UN Security Council, warning that the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is worsening due to rising needs, operational restrictions, and severe underfunding. During her briefing on Monday, OCHA Director Edem Wosornu emphasized that sustained international support and adherence to the humanitarian exception are essential for averting famine and safeguarding vulnerable populations, especially women and girls.
Afghanistan remains one of the world's most complex humanitarian crises, with nearly half of the population — almost 22 million people — in need of assistance. Over 11.6 million of those in need are children. The crisis is exacerbated by insecurity, economic fragility, climate shocks, and significant population displacement.
“In late February, fighting re-erupted between Afghanistan and Pakistan, displacing over 100,000 people across the eastern and southeastern regions and causing several hundred civilian casualties,” Wosornu said.
“Already struggling families were pushed even closer to the edge.”
She noted that around 17,000 families in two districts in Nuristan Province, who were already on the World Food Programme's famine watch list, were cut off from all aid for nearly two months. Damage to health facilities and schools disrupted services for tens of thousands more.
“While a ceasefire in April has led to a reduction in violence, explosive weapons contamination continues to pose a deadly threat – especially to children,” she said.
“The conflict has also disrupted critical supply chains with the continued border closure affecting humanitarian programs, especially food security and nutrition. A reopening of the border is urgently required to keep the response moving.”
Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan remain strained, with continued border closures and security incidents
Meanwhile, hunger is growing across Afghanistan. Currently, some 4.7 million people are at risk of severe food insecurity (IPC Phase 4), “which is 50 percent higher than during the same time last year. Some 3.7 million children are facing acute malnutrition,” the OCHA official said.
“We continue to receive alarming reports of families forced into desperate choices, including selling daughters, simply to survive.”
At the same time, cross-border returns are ongoing. Since 2023, nearly 5.9 million people have been forced to return from neighboring countries, including Pakistan and Iran.
“So far in 2026, 736,000 Afghans have returned, mostly from Pakistan, adding pressure on host communities and cities already struggling to provide basic services,” Wosornu said.
Moreover, Afghanistan remains on the front line of the global climate crisis, experiencing recurring disasters such as droughts and floods. Ranked among the world’s most vulnerable and least prepared countries to manage the impacts of climate change, Afghan communities are already experiencing severe consequences.
Seismic events are also highly prevalent in the country. In August 2025, one of the deadliest earthquakes in Afghanistan in recent years struck its eastern regions. The earthquake devastated communities in Kunar and Nangarhar provinces and claimed more than 2,150 lives.
“Natural hazards are adding another layer of suffering. Spring flooding has killed almost 100 people and destroyed or damaged tens of thousands of homes, alongside health facilities, schools, bridges, hundreds of kilometers of roads and vital crops,” Wosornu said.
She warned that women are especially hard hit by the burden of this crisis.
“Women-headed households in Afghanistan continue to face some of the highest levels of food insecurity and economic hardship, leaving many mothers to face impossible trade-offs about how to feed and protect their families,” she added.
Restrictions imposed by the Taliban — the de facto authorities — severely limit opportunities for women and girls, who cannot attend school after the age of 12, have limited employment opportunities, and face restricted access to basic services.
Wosornu warned that activities supporting women and girls are disproportionately affected by these restrictions. She cited broader bureaucratic obstacles as well as specific issues, such as the closure of women’s spaces, reports of harassment, arrests linked to dress codes, and the continued ban on Afghan women entering UN premises.
The systematic exclusion of women from public life remains a central challenge. Wosornu noted that, although women and girls already face severe barriers in Afghanistan, allowing female aid workers to operate is crucial for meeting the needs of all women and girls.
Despite these and other obstacles, humanitarian organizations continue to deliver assistance. From January to March, 4.9 million people received at least one form of assistance through the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan.
According to OCHA, significant progress has been made in aid delivery mechanisms. The humanitarian exception provided under Resolution 2615 has been crucial in enabling life-saving humanitarian assistance to reach millions of people across Afghanistan.
Since the resolution's adoption, financial access for aid groups has dramatically improved. The percentage of humanitarian organizations reporting difficulties transferring funds has fallen from 87 percent in October 2021 to around 15 percent as of May 2026.
However, operational obstacles persist. Wosornu noted that bureaucratic and administrative obstacles continue to slow down aid delivery and that the risk of aid diversion requires continuous monitoring. She emphasized that Afghans should not lose access to life-saving assistance because of the de facto authorities.
“Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis is not standing still. It is evolving – and, in several respects, deteriorating – under the combined pressures of rising needs, declining resources and restrictions on women,” she said.
One of the most pressing concerns raised during the briefing was the severe lack of funding. This year's response requires US$1.71 billion to reach 17.5 million people, yet only "15 percent of that funding" has been received thus far.
The consequences of the lack of funding are already being felt. Compared to 2025, the reach of the humanitarian response has fallen by 40 percent, with 3 million fewer people receiving life-saving aid.
“Without urgent funding, WFP warns that famine-prevention activities for approximately 1.5 million people in high-risk areas will be cut. Support for families returning at several key border points is also at risk,” Wosornu said.
She called on the Security Council to support Resolution 2615 and to advocate for principled humanitarian aid, the protection of civilians, and unimpeded access, including for female humanitarian workers. She also urged the Council to increase flexible and predictable funding immediately to prevent further cuts to critical programs amid rising needs.