The United Nations has announced an allocation of $16.6mn to support at-risk communities in northern and northeastern Afghanistan in coping with the impact of severe drought.
The funding marks both the first and the largest joint allocation aimed at anticipatory drought response in Afghanistan, comprising $6.6mn from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and $10mn from the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund.
According to Tom Fletcher, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, forecast-based action represents the future of humanitarian response, enabling aid to be delivered before disasters strike.
“With the right science and data, we can deliver faster, protect more people, and stretch scarce resources further, at a time when devastating funding cuts are deepening Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis,” he said.
The initiative is said to focus on four provinces—Faryab, Sar-e-Pul, Takhar, and Badakhshan—that continue to suffer the effects of consecutive droughts.
In anticipation of worsening conditions in the months ahead, the UN and its humanitarian partners will provide cash assistance and vital support across sectors including food security, agriculture, livestock, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), health, nutrition, and protection. This coordinated effort involves five UN agencies collaborating with six international NGOs and ten Afghan organizations to ensure a response that is locally driven and community-focused.
Afghanistan now joins a growing number of countries where UN pooled funds are driving anticipatory action, allowing for quicker, forecast-informed humanitarian responses. Since 2020, the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and Country-Based Pooled Funds have allocated $122mn and $48mn, respectively, to support preemptive responses to droughts, floods, storms, and disease outbreaks around the world.
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