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Unicef official warns of worsening situation in Afghanistan
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SME Times News Bureau | 16 Oct, 2021
The already dire situation faced by Afghan civilians will get worse, and
the humanitarian needs of children and women will increase over the
coming months, a Unicef official said.
"The situation is
critical, and it will only get worse," UNICEF Deputy Executive Director
Omar Abdi told reporters at the UN Headquarters in New York, adding that
the humanitarian needs will increase amidst "a severe drought and
consequent water scarcity, an uncertain security environment, continued
displacement, the devastating socio-economic consequences of the
Covid-19 pandemic and the onset of winter".
Even before the
Taliban takeover in August, at least 10 million children across the
country were in need of humanitarian assistance to survive, Abdi said,
and at least 1 million of these children are at risk of dying due to
severe acute malnutrition without immediate treatment, reports Xinhua
news agency.
The health system and social services are on the
verge of collapse, as medical supplies are running dangerously low, and
cases of measles and acute watery diarrhoea are on the rise, Abdi said.
The
economic system is also on the verge of collapse, he added, noting many
teachers and health workers have not been paid in at least two months,
and yet they continue to work.
The official also said that the education gains of the past two decades must be strengthened, not rolled back.
The
number of children enrolled in schools increased from 1 million in
2001, most of them boys, to almost 10 million children, including 4
million girls, at present.
The number of schools tripled, from
6,000 to 18,000. Despite this progress, 4.2 million children are out of
school, including 2.6 million girls, he noted.
The Unicef, the UN
and humanitarian partners are sparing no effort to overcome financial
shortfalls, logistical challenges, and an increasingly complex
geopolitical situation to support the millions of women, men and
children in Afghanistan who depend on humanitarian assistance and
protection, the official added.
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