Funding cuts force closure of over 100 child malnutrition treatment sites in Afghanistan: UN official


FILE PHOTO: An 18-month-old in Afghanistan suffers from severe acute malnutrition with medical complications in 2022. - Unicef

KABUL: Funding cuts to humanitarian assistance have compelled the closure of more than 100 facilities treating children with severe wasting in Afghanistan, Melissa Fleming, the United Nations under-secretary-general for global communications, said on Sunday (Aug 30).

Across Afghanistan, 3.7 million children are currently suffering from acute malnutrition, including around one million facing life-threatening severe acute malnutrition, Fleming posted on her X account.

Unicef earlier projected that 21.9 million people, among them 11.6 million children, will require humanitarian assistance in 2026, as the country remains locked in a cycle of overlapping crises.

In response, Unicef has launched an urgent appeal for US$949.1 million to deliver life-saving aid and essential services to 12 million people, including 6.5 million children. - Xinhua

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