Two in three children in Afghanistan not eating enough, says report

Kabul [Afghanistan], April 20 (ANI): With the country facing one of its worst food crises, about two in three children in Afghanistan – or 12 million – whose families depend on farming to survive, are struggling to get enough food to eat daily according to reports.
Among the Children, about 5 million of them in the country are on the brink of starvation according to ‘Save the Children’, a UK-based child rights group.
“Humanitarian aid can alleviate urgent needs, but it can’t prop up an entire economy. Until we address the economic crisis, families will have no other option but to resort to desperate measures like selling their children or sending their children to work, which there is no way back from. With so much of the country already on the brink of famine, time is of the essence,” said Save the Children’s Country Director in Afghanistan, Chris Nyamandi.
Meanwhile, some children’s rights activists said that international organizations should pay close attention to children’s protection in Afghanistan, Tolo News reported.
“Farmers who are facing drought today, they should be provided with irrigation systems so their children can grow up,” said Homaira Farhangyar, said a women’s and children’s rights activist, according to Tolo News.
“Unless there are appropriate solutions to improve the economic situation of the people, such crises can have very negative effects in the short and long-term on the situation of children in Afghanistan,” Zarqa Yaftali, another activist said.
The Save the Children report also pointed out that the negative effects of climate change are increasing and the planet is getting warmer with each passing day, which is why Afghanistan is facing severe climate change and accompanying drought, with rains expected to be below average in the present year as well. (ANI)