UNDP - United Nations Development Programme

Published purpose

November 2018 - In Afghanistan, the United Nations (UN) estimates that 4.2 million people are in need of life-saving humanitarian assistance, up from 3.3 million earlier in the year. Over the course of 2018, Afghanistan has been facing a severe drought, resulting in the severe deterioration of the humanitarian situation. According to the UN, up to 2.5 million persons are facing urgent food security needs. The drought and continued insecurity have also resulted in the displacement of over 250,000 persons since the start of the year. As a result, the UN has revised its 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan to reflect the new needs of drought affected persons. With GAC’s support, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is managing the Afghanistan Common Humanitarian Fund. This Fund channels resources to humanitarian partners to respond to the critical needs of people affected by the drought in Afghanistan. Project activities include: (1) supporting life-saving activities by filling critical funding gaps; (2) promoting needs-based assistance in accordance with humanitarian principles; (3) strengthening coordination of humanitarian assistance; (4) improving the relevance and coherence of humanitarian response by strategically funding priorities as identified under the Humanitarian Response Plan; and (5) expanding the delivery of humanitarian assistance in hard-to-reach areas of the country by partnering with local and international non-governmental organizations.