The catastrophic humanitarian situation in Afghanistan has significantly worsened since the Taliban regime took power and due to frequent natural disasters. More than half of the population is in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. According to UN estimates, more than 6 million people are internally displaced within Afghanistan, and 7.6 million have fled, mainly to neighbouring countries. To provide aid on the ground and help prevent further waves of migration to Europe and Austria, the Austrian government is allocating five million euros from the Foreign Disaster Fund (FDF) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“All eyes are currently on the tense situation in the Middle East and Putin’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine. Yet, we must not forget the people of Afghanistan. We need to act now to prevent a humanitarian collapse and, in turn, even more illegal migration towards Europe”,
emphasised Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
The Taliban regime shows no willingness to create an inclusive political system. Instead, it has systematically stripped women and girls of their rights and effectively banned them from public life and society.
“Nowhere else in the world are women’s rights trampled on as brutally as in Afghanistan. The Taliban’s long list of barbaric measures against Afghan women and girls is utterly unacceptable”, stated Foreign Minister Schallenberg, referencing the ongoing UN campaign against violence against women.
Five million euros will be distributed as follows: two million euros will be allocated to UN Women to support protecting women and girls in Afghanistan. Another two million euros will go to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to help prevent illegal migration to Europe through on-the-ground assistance. One million euros will also be provided to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Since 2017, Austria has contributed over 50 million euros in humanitarian aid to support the Afghan population.
