UN OCHA: Restricted Access Impacts Humanitarian Aid Distribution in Afghanistan

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has stated that access levels in different areas of Afghanistan directly affect how humanitarian aid is distributed. In its latest Access Severity Review report, the agency assessed the status of districts in terms of improving or ongoing access challenges.

According to the report, conditions have improved in some districts compared to the past, but significant obstacles persist in several other areas. OCHA emphasized that wherever access is limited, the process of delivering needs-based and principled humanitarian assistance faces difficulties.

The report provides district-level information to help aid organizations plan more precisely for aid distribution. However, restrictions imposed by the Taliban administration in certain regions, including administrative constraints and limitations on staff, are considered factors casting a shadow over humanitarian organizations’ operations.

Aid agencies have repeatedly stressed that unhindered access to all areas and guaranteed protection for humanitarian workers are essential prerequisites for delivering effective and equitable aid to those in need across Afghanistan.