RASC News Agency: The World Food Programme (WFP) issued a stark warning on Sunday, august 3, cautioning that Afghanistan’s hunger crisis has reached a critical tipping point. The UN agency announced that it urgently requires $539 million in funding to sustain life-saving humanitarian operations over the next six months. According to the WFP, nearly 10 million people in Afghanistan currently depend on food aid for basic survival, with the most vulnerable being women-led households and returning children many of whom have been displaced by conflict or economic desperation. Statistics provided by the WFP paint a dire picture: two out of every three female-headed families are unable to meet their basic food needs, and nearly 3.5 million children are suffering from acute malnutrition. The agency emphasized that Afghanistan is now home to one of the most severe food insecurity crises in the world, with over half of the country’s population facing the threat of hunger.
The rapid deterioration of conditions has been exacerbated by sharp reductions in international funding particularly the suspension of U.S. support to the WFP, which had previously formed a critical lifeline for millions. Multiple sources confirm that the abrupt cessation of USAID-backed food and medical programs has halted vital operations across the country, further deepening the suffering of already marginalized populations. Despite the scale of the crisis, only about one million people have received assistance in recent months, leaving millions more without any form of humanitarian support. The WFP estimates that it requires an additional $650 million to continue essential operations through the end of 2025. These funds are necessary not only to provide food but also to deliver treatment for malnutrition and to offer specialized support to mothers and children at risk. Currently, more than 4.6 million women and children are experiencing severe undernutrition, and over two-thirds of households headed by women lack sufficient food to meet daily nutritional needs.
The WFP further warned that unless urgent funding is secured, the risk of widespread famine and death especially during the impending winter will become nearly unavoidable. Afghanistan has now climbed to the top of the global hunger watchlist, with conditions deteriorating more rapidly than in almost any other nation. The agency stressed that declining foreign aid, particularly from the United States, has critically hampered the humanitarian response at a time when international solidarity is most needed. Though the Taliban regime has persistently claimed it can govern and stabilize the country, the accelerating hunger crisis stands in sharp contrast to those assertions. Under Taliban rule, Afghanistan’s already fragile infrastructure has further collapsed, while mismanagement, lack of accountability, and widespread repression especially against women have rendered humanitarian access increasingly difficult.
Global actors, the WFP urged, must act immediately. “Without urgent international support, Afghanistan will face a catastrophic loss of life,” the agency said. As the humanitarian disaster continues to escalate under a regime that has demonstrated little capacity or will to safeguard its population, the burden now falls on the global community to prevent a full-scale famine and protect the lives of Afghanistan’s most vulnerable.
