Highlights
- In 2024, 23.7 million people, including 12.6 million children, were in need of humanitarian assistance, mainly due to the residual impacts of a protracted conflict, returnees from Pakistan, extreme climate shocks and the country's severe economic decline, which is characterized by high unemployment and a fragile recovery.
- UNICEF reached over 19 million people (53 per cent children) with lifesaving and life-sustaining Health, WASH, Nutrition, Education, Child protection, Social Protection and community engagement interventions during the year.
- In 2024, UNICEF provided life-saving treatment for severe wasting to 628,307 children under 5, addressing nearly 80 per cent of the estimated burden.
- The 2024 UNICEF Afghanistan Humanitarian Action for Children (HAC) appeal for US$ 1.44 billion was, for the third consecutive year, UNICEF’s largest single-country appeal. Thanks to generous contributions from partners, the appeal was funded at approximately 56 per cent by the end of 2024.
Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs
In 2024, 23.7 million people, including 12.6 million children, were in need of humanitarian assistance, mainly due to the residual impacts of a protracted conflict, returnees from Pakistan, extreme climate shocks and the country's severe economic decline, which is characterized by high unemployment and a fragile recovery. The exclusion of women and girls from most facets of life, including education and the workforce, has significantly increased their protection risks and worsened an already deeply challenging humanitarian situation. The lack of investment in public services also contributed to the deterioration of key basic service provision, particularly in the WASH and health sectors, hindering the ability of vulnerable communities to recover from shocks and build resilience.
From January to December 2024, 184,882 people were affected by natural disasters throughout Afghanistan. All 34 provinces experienced one or multiple natural disasters during this period. Afghanistan is prone to earthquakes, flooding, drought, landslides, and avalanches. On average such disasters affect 200,000 people every year.
Over 1.2 million undocumented Afghans returned from Pakistan and Iran between January and December 2024. Since 15 September 2023 , over 800,000 Afghan returnees from Pakistan have been registered, with numbers increasing from fewer than 200 people per day in early October 2023 to more than 17,000 people per day by early November 2023. Although the monthly number of returnees crossing into Afghanistan has since stabilized, the ongoing threat of Afghan deportations from Pakistan persists.
While food security showed slight improvements in 2024, 14.8 million people (32 per cent of the population) are projected to be food insecure (IPC Phase 3/Crisis or above) during the winter months and are in urgent need of humanitarian food assistance from November 2024 to March 2025. The risk of food insecurity is likely to increase as borderline La Niña conditions have been projected for the period December 2024 - February 2025. Cumulative precipitation will most likely be below-average for the 2024/25 winter wet season and the same is expected to continue until the end of the 2025 spring season. Consequently, below-average snowpack development, snow depths, and snow water volumes (SWV) may be seen throughout the 2024/25 precipitation season.
The IPC Acute Malnutrition analysis, conducted in October 2024, provided a comprehensive overview of the malnutrition situation. Supported by the FAO IPC Global Support Unit, the analysis covered both the June-October peak malnutrition period and the November 2024-May 2025 projection. Four provinces—Helmand, Kandahar, Nuristan, and Paktika—were classified in IPC Phase 4 (Critical), while 24 provinces were in IPC Phase 3 (Serious) and six in IPC Phase 2 (Alert).
Afghanistan is also prone to epidemic diseases, including acute watery diarrhoea (AWD/Cholera) and measles. Since January 2024, there have been 167,594 reported cases of AWD, resulting in 85 deaths (CFR 0.05%), with over half of the cases affecting children under five. Some 59,753 suspected measles cases and 289 associated deaths were also reported during the year. Among suspected measles cases, 47,808 (80.0%) were under-five children, and 27,213 (45.5%) were females.
The first two months of 2024 were marked by a harsh winter that pushed vulnerable populations, already overwhelmed by multiple crises, to the brink. Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) admissions surpassed the peaks of the past four years during winter. Since the beginning of the year, 1,357,350 ARI-Pneumonia cases and 2,999 associated deaths (CFR=0.2%) were reported from 34 provinces. Out of the total cases, 851,931 (62.8%) were under-five children, and 671,120 (49.4%) were females. Out of 2,999 deaths, 2,506 (83.6%) were under-five children and 1,374 (45.8%) were females. The highest cumulative incidence of ARI per 10,000 population was reported in Balkh (551.7), followed by Nuristan (549.0), Bamyan (546.5), and Jawzjan (519.5).