UN says 21.9 million people in Afghanistan need humanitarian aid

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that 21.9 million people in Afghanistan need humanitarian assistance, while by mid-September only 31% of the funding required to address the situation had been secured.

In a post on its X account on Tuesday, Sept. 31, and on the sidelines of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, OCHA said a lack of funding has made it difficult to respond to humanitarian needs in Afghanistan.

The agency stressed that the timely and flexible provision of financial resources is essential to continue aid efforts in Afghanistan. According to OCHA, securing this funding is crucial to preventing the humanitarian situation in the country from worsening.

OCHA is the United Nations body responsible for coordinating humanitarian assistance and regularly monitors humanitarian needs and aid delivery in crisis-hit countries, including Afghanistan.