UNICEF: More Than 500,000 Children Hospitalized as Afghanistan’s Malnutrition Crisis Deepens
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says that over the past nine months, more than 500,000 children in Afghanistan have been admitted to treatment centres because of severe wasting, a situation the agency says shows the worsening malnutrition crisis in the country.
UNICEF said the crisis has made younger children especially vulnerable and has placed heavy pressure on hospitals across Afghanistan. According to the agency’s figures, 3.7 million children across the country are affected by wasting caused by malnutrition, and nearly one million of them suffer from severe acute malnutrition, a life-threatening condition.
Tajuddin Oyewale, UNICEF’s representative in Afghanistan, said nearly 40% of children hospitalized because of severe wasting and related complications are infants under six months old. He added that children under the age of two account for 83% of severe acute malnutrition cases.
UNICEF also warned that nearly half of all children in Afghanistan are struggling with moderate or severe food insecurity. The agency said children facing severe food insecurity are up to six times more likely to become wasted during peak malnutrition periods.
According to UNICEF, repeated droughts, floods, the effects of climate change, regional instability and the large-scale return of migrants from neighbouring countries have increased pressure on Afghan families and on health and nutrition services in the country.
The agency also warned about cuts to humanitarian aid funding, saying that more than 100 treatment centres for children with severe wasting have been closed this year due to a lack of financial resources. UNICEF said hundreds of other centres providing nutrition services for children and for pregnant and breastfeeding women are also facing funding shortages.
UNICEF added that 57% of the funding needed for nutrition services in Afghanistan has still not been secured, and that continuing this situation could worsen the crisis. The agency called for more sustained assistance.
UNICEF is one of the United Nations bodies working in Afghanistan in the areas of child protection, health and nutrition, and in recent years it has repeatedly warned about the spread of malnutrition among children in the country.
