The United Nations has lamented the devastating situation Afghan people are facing, adding that ninety-seven percent of them live in poverty and two-thirds of the population, that is 28 million will need humanitarian assistance this year to survive.
UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres who made this known in Doha, Qatar on Tuesday said, it’s difficult to overestimate the gravity of the situation in Afghanistan, while six million Afghan children, women, and men are one step away from famine-like conditions.
He revealed that Afghanistan has the largest humanitarian crisis in the world today. “Meanwhile, funding is evaporating. Our Humanitarian Response Plan, seeking $4.6 billion, has received a mere $294 million – 6.4 per cent of the total funding required”.
Guterres who stressed that funding is not the only concern but the vast majority of the personnel providing vital assistance are Afghan nationals. “And many are women aid workers.
Adding that the current ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations and national and international NGOs is unacceptable and puts lives in jeopardy.
According to him, “Let me be crystal clear: we will never be silent in the face of unprecedented, systemic attacks on women and girls’ rights. We will always speak out when millions of women and girls are being silenced and erased from sight.
“This is a grave violation of fundamental human rights. It also violates Afghanistan’s obligations under international law, namely, human rights law, and infringes on the principle of non-discrimination, which is a core tenet underpinning the United Nations Charter.
“And it deliberately undermines the development of a country that desperately needs the contributions of all, in order to achieve sustainable peace and contribute to regional stability. Humanitarian aid is a fragile lifeline for millions of Afghans.
“Throughout the past decades, we stayed, and we delivered. And we are determined to seek the necessary conditions to keep delivering. The United Nations will not waver in our commitment to support the people of Afghanistan”, UN Chief said.
Guterres thanked the Government of Qatar for the exemplary hospitality. “I have come to Doha to convene a meeting of Special Envoys on Afghanistan for a frank and constructive exchange of views.
“And I am so pleased that we were able to enter this meeting with the unanimous Security Council resolution 2681 of 27 April calling for full, equal, meaningful and safe participation of women and girls in Afghanistan.
“The spirit of unity shown in the adoption of the resolution was carried over into the meeting we just had. The meeting was about developing a common international approach, not about recognition of the de facto Taliban authorities”, UN Secretary-General noted.
