KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — At least seven hundred children have died from malnutrition and seasonal diseases in Nangarhar province, eastern Afghanistan, over the past six months, according to health sources.
Sources told KabulNow today that the special unit for malnourished patients at Nangarhar Provincial Hospital is currently filled with children brought in for treatment from various districts across the province.
According to the sources, hundreds of children suffering from malnutrition have been treated at this hospital in recent months. However, dozens of others remain untreated due to the hospital’s limited capacity and shortage of materials and medicines.
Some families with children hospitalized at the facility are complaining about insufficient beds, medicine, equipment, and lack of proper attention from the hospital staff, the sources said.
Sources linked the recent surge in malnutrition in the region to the population’s poor economic conditions and limited access to healthcare facilities.
Fazl Mawla, whose young daughter is hospitalized at the facility, told KabulNow that doctors initially diagnosed her with diarrhea but later found she was suffering from malnutrition, requiring her to remain at the facility for further treatment.
He further highlighted the shortage of medicine and equipment, pointing out that patients are not receiving adequate care at this hospital or others in the province.
Following the collapse of the Western-backed republic government and the Taliban’s subsequent takeover in August 2021, Afghanistan’s economy collapsed, plunging the landlocked country into its worst humanitarian crisis.
The country’s economy has plummeted, leaving millions without access to basic necessities, which has disproportionately impacted children, who are among the most vulnerable.
Earlier in May, Save the Children reported that over 6 million children in Afghanistan—about six out of ten—will experience crisis or emergency levels of hunger this year. The agency also projected that nearly 3 million children under the age of five in Afghanistan will suffer from acute malnutrition in 2024.
Previously, health sources in northeastern Badakhshan province reported that 26 children had died from malnutrition in the province over the past six months.
The death toll is likely much higher, particularly in remote areas, as many cases remain unreported due to limited media access and the Taliban’s strict restrictions on information flow.
