Entering a third year of drought, having gone through a deadly winter of extreme cold, snow and flooding in many parts of the country, Afghanistan has been ranked among the countries worst affected by climate change.
According to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) Afghanistan is third worst affected country by climate change. Made worse by the harsh winter driving people from their homes and destroying their lands and crops.
According to the IRC’s annual Watchlist, Afghanistan’s position changed from the worst in 2022 to the third worst in 2023 not because of improvements in the country, but the “severity of the situation in East Africa”.
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The ten worst affected counties, which include Yemen, Chad, South Sudan, Central African Republic and others, according to the IRC are country who contribute “little” global greenhouse emissions.
David Miliband, the IRC CEO and President said: “The world’s most vulnerable populations are already on the frontline of the climate crisis.’ Adding that “To curtail the worst climate and extreme weather disasters, major-emitting nations must take drastic actions to rein in emissions.”