KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that Kabul’s groundwater could be fully depleted by 2030, driven by rapid urbanization and the intensifying impacts of climate change.
In a statement on Tuesday, October 29, UNICEF stressed the urgent need for immediate action to prevent a looming water crisis.
UNICEF reported that Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), along with Tajudeen Oyewale, UNICEF’s Afghanistan representative, recently conducted visits to several water-scarce areas in Kabul. Their visit aimed to explore potential solutions to the worsening water shortage.
Over recent years, severe water scarcity has plagued residents across Kabul, with frequent images of people lining up at water distribution points. Widespread, unregulated drilling of deep wells has further eroded the city’s groundwater levels.
The UN Development Program (UNDP) has previously highlighted Afghanistan’s dire water crisis, which has left roughly 79% of the population without adequate access to clean water. UNDP underscores that Afghanistan’s water challenges stem from interlinked issues, including prolonged drought, economic instability, and decades of conflict, all of which have significantly damaged the country’s water infrastructure.
According to UNDP data from 2023, 67% of Afghan households reported struggles with drought, and 16% faced flood-related disruptions. The country is currently enduring one of its worst droughts in decades, compounded by food and water shortages amid a humanitarian catastrophe that threatens over two-thirds of its population.
The Global Climate Risk Index ranks Afghanistan as the sixth most vulnerable nation to climate-related threats, underscoring the urgent need for international and local solutions to mitigate this escalating crisis.
