The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has reported that the average debt among Afghan families has increased sixfold between 2019 and 2022, rising from $114 to $687. In a tweet on Wednesday, OCHA stated that Afghan families are struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table.
The UN office added that the UN must stand with Afghans and continues to dig on their behalf.
The collapse of the Afghan economy after the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021 has led to a humanitarian crisis, which was compounded by the group’s December order to ban women from working as aid workers. This order has forced major aid agencies to suspend their deliveries, exacerbating the already dire situation.
According to the UN’s latest report released in January, out of Afghanistan’s estimated 43 million population, 28.3 million people are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance in 2023.
The UN has said it needs $2.59 billion to provide food assistance and agricultural support to 21.2 million people in Afghanistan in 2023.
