Overview
- The IPC and WFP report that more than 17 million Afghans face crisis-level food insecurity this winter, roughly 3 million more than last year.
- Of those, 4.7 million are projected to reach emergency levels through March 2026, with conditions expected to ease after the spring harvest starting in April.
- WFP says it cannot launch a significant winter response for the first time in decades and seeks over $460 million to deliver assistance to six million people.
- Food assistance is currently reaching only about 2.7% of the population as a weak economy and reduced remittances limit access to help.
- Nearly four million children are acutely malnourished, including about one million severe cases requiring hospital care, and agencies warn winter child deaths are likely to rise without more resources.