KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Luxembourg has donated $2.3 million and Turkey $500,000 to the United Nations Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (UN-STFA), while the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided $600,000 to UNICEF to support humanitarian relief efforts in the country.
UN-STFA thanked Luxembourg in a post on X on Wednesday, saying the funding will help expand essential services and strengthen economic and climate resilience for communities across Afghanistan.
In a separate post, the fund also expressed gratitude to Turkey, stating that its $500,000 contribution will support essential services and build resilience for returnees and internally displaced people.
Meanwhile, UNICEF said on Tuesday that the Gates Foundation funding will enable urgent winter assistance for children and families affected by last year’s earthquake in eastern Afghanistan. The earthquake, which struck at the end of August 2025, killed nearly 2,000 people, injured more than 3,600, and destroyed thousands of homes and other critical infrastructure, leaving many families displaced.
“This contribution from the Gates Foundation came at a critical moment, as families face the harshest weeks of winter after the earthquakes,” said Dr Tajudeen Oyewale, UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan. “It has helped families meet urgent needs and, critically, enabled the continuity of life-saving services for children and mothers through safe spaces and community-based support, even in difficult winter conditions.”
Afghanistan continues to face one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, with nearly 22 million people in need of assistance this year, according to the United Nations. Malnutrition remains a major concern, with the World Food Programme estimating that around 3.7 million children and 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women will suffer from acute malnutrition in 2026.
UN agencies and aid organizations continue to call for increased and sustained funding to provide life-saving aid, particularly to those affected by natural disasters and returning families struggling to survive harsh winter conditions
