Appeal launched to cope with drought

Afghanistan's government and the United Nations (UN) have appealed for US $76 million to help feed 2.5 million drought-hit Afghans. Afghanistan, which suffered harsh droughts between 1998 and 2001, is facing a "food crisis" due to inadequate rainfall in April and May and an expected shortfall in this year's wheat harvest. Officials said wheat would normally account for 80 percent of total cereal production. Karim Khalili, vice president and head of Afghanistan's Emergency Response Commission (ERC), said on Monday that 2.5 million people were facing an "alarming food crisis" due to a harsh drought. "The calamity is looming, so we need proper assistance from the international community to deal with the crisis," Khalili said. Khalili warned that the drought could exacerbate poverty and unemployment if aid were not provided. "If we do not help, then there won't be any options for farmers but to resort to illicit poppy cultivation. We would also see a huge wave of displacement across the country." Khalili said anti-government elements could exploit the unemployment and poverty to fuel insecurity. Chris Alexander, deputy special representative of the UN Secretary General to Afghanistan, called upon donors to help those suffering. "The people of Afghanistan are facing a new crisis and I hope that donors would take this urgency into consideration," he said. Initially, the appeal would run from July to December this year. The Afghan Ministry of Agriculture and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) have estimated that there is a cereal shortfall of 1.2 million metric tones. The country’s total cereal consumption this year has been estimated at 6 million mt, while the projected amount of cereal production stands at only 4.8 million mt. The drought also worsens the supply of drinking water. The appeal includes the distribution of water to tackle major shortages in certain locations. The UN and Afghan government said this would help mitigate the potential health risks to children under the age of five, as well as malnourished and lactating women. An estimated 6.5 million people were already seasonally or chronically food insecure in Afghanistan, according to the ERC. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that more than 50 percent of children in Afghanistan were malnourished, while one in three people living in rural areas were unable to meet their basic nutritional requirements. Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with more than half its nearly 25 million inhabitants living below the poverty line.