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Afghanistan Emergency
Millions of people in Afghanistan are facing poverty and hunger. Donate now to help struggling families survive.
Millions of people in Afghanistan are facing poverty and hunger. Donate now to help struggling families survive.
Since October 2023, thousands of Afghans who fled to Pakistan have been forced to return home, straining already extremely limited resources.
UNHCR is on the ground delivering life-saving aid and protection for displaced Afghans and refugees. Our teams are providing relief items such as blankets and stoves, as well as cash assistance, mental health support and legal aid.
But the people of Afghanistan urgently need more help.
Sharifa and her family were forced to flee their home after a series of deadly earthquakes struck Herat province in October.
“Life is very difficult,” she says. “We have no clothes and no cot for the baby. It is cold and windy, and almost everyone is sick. We need support.”
Please donate now to provide life-saving aid to vulnerable families in Afghanistan.
Your gift can provide emergency aid such as tents, blankets and solar lamps for Afghan families in need.
Many Afghans have fled their homes with very few belongings and are struggling to survive in appalling conditions, living in flimsy shelters and with little access to food and water. Women and girls lack opportunities for education and employment, making them more vulnerable to gender-based violence and early marriage.
Fatima* and her family fled their hometown in Bamyan province to escape the fighting. When she moved back with her three children, she had no money for rent and moved into a cave.
“We had nowhere else to go,” she says. “We couldn’t afford to pay any rent.”
UNHCR provided Fatima and her family with cash assistance to help pay for everyday expenses including food and clothing.
Fatima, 29, internally displaced in Afghanistan
Your donation will help us reach vulnerable families affected by the crisis in Afghanistan. With your help, UNHCR can provide shelter, cash assistance, mental health support, and relief items including blankets, tarpaulins and hygiene kits.
Your gift can provide essential items including tents, blankets, solar lamps and hygiene kits for families who’ve lost everything.
Your gift can provide emergency shelter to protect a family displaced by conflict or natural disaster.
Your gift can provide cash assistance to help families buy food and medicine.
Imam Uddin, father of five, internally displaced in Afghanistan
Afghanistan has suffered more than 40 years of conflict, natural disasters, poverty and food insecurity. These ongoing challenges have stretched the resilience of refugees, internally displaced people and host communities to their limits.
Over 500,000 people have returned to Afghanistan after Pakistan announced the repatriation of undocumented foreigners, worsening the country’s severe humanitarian crisis.
Most displacement in 2021 and 2022 has been internal – Afghan civilians are being forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in other parts of the country.
Outside Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan have generously hosted Afghan refugees for many years and granted them access to health and education.
UNHCR appreciates the generous hospitality neighbouring countries have shown asylum-seekers for over four decades and is calling on all countries to suspend the forced return of Afghan nationals. Now, thousands of Afghans who were living in Pakistan are returning in fear and haste, after Pakistan announced the repatriation of undocumented foreigners.
You can help Afghan refugees fleeing the country and internally displaced people by making a donation or fundraising for us.
By road and by air. Throughout the crisis, UNHCR has continued to get humanitarian supplies into the country through the Pakistan border. When needs increased after August 2021, UNHCR opened a new road route in the north from Uzbekistan.
Yes. UNHCR is distributing relief items like cooking sets, blankets and hygiene supplies to Afghan families. Our teams are also providing shelter support and cash assistance so the most vulnerable families can purchase their basic needs. These supplies have helped people to survive but competing humanitarian needs and huge number of arrivals makes for a difficult time ahead.
UNHCR is providing displaced families with shelter support, cash assistance and relief items including blankets, solar lamps and heating appliances. Our teams are also providing protection, healthcare and legal support to returning Afghan nationals at the border and beyond.
Afghanistan Situation Portal – for the latest updates on the situation overall, including UNHCR situation reports, funding requirements and UNHCR’s support for neighbouring countries taking in refugees from Afghanistan.
*Names changed for protection reasons
The majority of funds raised by Australia for UNHCR are directed to UNHCR’s emergency operations, providing the ready funds and resources to respond quickly and effectively in situations of crisis and disaster.