Afghanistan Peace CampaignRecently, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) reported that the reduction in US aid threatens the lives of millions in Afghanistan.
Eight days have passed since the end of the set deadline for the suspension of US aid to the world, including Afghanistan, yet the aid has not resumed.
Recently, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) reported that the reduction in US aid threatens the lives of millions in Afghanistan.
The report states: “Families in Afghanistan continue to face food insecurity, disease and ongoing instability. For 23 million Afghans, US aid funding has been a critical lifeline—but that support is now in jeopardy. Funding cuts are already having devastating impacts on the country’s most vulnerable communities, especially women and children.”
Economic affairs expert Abdul Nasir Rashtia stated: “The main beneficiaries of this aid were ordinary Afghan citizens, and the government had no involvement in its distribution. However, once the aid began to take on a political color, the assistance decreased or was suspended for ninety days. As a result, ordinary people — over three million children suffering from malnutrition and Afghanistan’s health sectors — were severely affected. Therefore, I believe whenever this aid becomes politicized, it is the ordinary citizens of Afghanistan, not the main violators of human rights, who suffer the consequences.”
The Ministry of Economy said that the United States financed 37 percent of the United Nations’ programs in Afghanistan, which has now been suspended.
The ministry stressed that the suspension of this aid has impacted the activities of 31 organizations that were financially supported by the United States.
Abdul Rahman Habib, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Economy, said: “Of the United Nations aid distributed through domestic and international organizations in Afghanistan, 37 percent was funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which is now halted. Consequently, the activities of 31 humanitarian NGOs, which heavily relied on US funding, have been affected.”
Concerns about rising poverty and unemployment in Afghanistan remain major challenges affecting a large segment of the population.
Samiullah, a resident of Samangan, said: “We only ask the Islamic Emirate to create sustainable employment opportunities for us — even a daily wage of two to one hundred Afghanis — so that we can work. We are tired of unstable, unreliable jobs; we roam all day without finding anything. Even a steady daily income of two to three hundred afghani would be much better if it were permanent.”
According to the International Rescue Committee report, Afghanistan is facing a severe humanitarian crisis, with over 22.9 million people urgently in need of assistance.
The report states that decades of war, a prolonged economic crisis, and environmental challenges have driven millions into poverty, with more than one in every three Afghans now facing food insecurity.