UN cuts food assistance for 2 million Afghans due to lack of funding

The United Nation's World Food Programme (WFP) in Afghanistan is being forced to drop food assistance for another 2 million people in September due to massive funding shortfalls, the organization said in a statement on Tuesday.

This brings the total number of people cut off from WFP support this year to 10 million.

"With the few resources we have left, we are not able to serve all those people teetering on the edge of utter destitution," said Hsiao-Wei Lee, WFP's country director in Afghanistan.

The cuts mean that 1.4 million new and expecting mothers and their children are no longer receiving specialized food designed to prevent malnutrition, the agency said.

"For the coming six months, WFP needs $1 billion to reach 21 million people with lifesaving food, nutrition, and livelihood support," the statement added.

Afghanistan is suffering from the impact of 40 years of conflict, a crippled economy and the effects of the climate crisis.

WFP urged donor countries to prioritize funding for humanitarian operations at the upcoming annual UN General Assembly in New York.