UN releases funds to save lots of the Afghan well being system from collapse | United Nations Information

The UN chief of aid is providing 45 million US dollars in emergency aid to increase life-saving aid in Afghanistan.

The United Nations’ relief chief has provided Afghanistan with 45 million US dollars in emergency aid to prevent the collapse of the ailing health system in Afghanistan.

Martin Griffiths, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said in a statement Wednesday that he is releasing funds from the United Nations Central Emergency Fund to advance life-saving aid in Afghanistan.

“Allowing the health care system in Afghanistan to collapse would be disastrous,” he said, adding that drugs, medical supplies and fuel are running out and that the necessary health workers are not being paid.

“People across the country would be denied access to basic health care such as emergency caesarean sections and trauma care.”

After the Taliban came to power last month, Afghanistan’s health system fell into crisis. International donors, including the World Bank and the European Union, have frozen funds for Afghanistan, making aid deliveries difficult and leaving many health facilities understaffed.

The money will go to the United Nations health and children’s agencies, which will enable them, with the help of partner NGOs, to keep hospitals, COVID-19 centers and other health facilities up and running until the end of the year.

“The UN is determined to stand by the Afghan people in their hour of need,” said Griffiths.

Aid organizations have warned of an “impending humanitarian crisis” if aid flows in the country are not resumed. The World Health Organization said earlier this month that 90 percent of its clinics will close soon as the situation in Afghanistan grows desperate.

The International Monetary Fund expressed deep concern about the country’s economic situation. IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said small-scale remittances had been granted but global lenders’ engagement with Afghanistan remained suspended.

Filipe Ribeiro, Médecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) representative in Afghanistan, told Reuters last month that “one of the big risks to the health system here is basically the collapse due to a lack of support.”

Aid organizations still in operation saw a significant increase in demand because other facilities are not fully functional.

The closure of Afghan banks has left almost all humanitarian organizations inaccessible to funds, leaving vendors and staff unpaid. Medical supplies also need to be replenished earlier than expected.

Last week the UN raised more than 1.2 billion

Griffiths had urged donors to convert pledges into cash donations as soon as possible, saying “the funding will throw a lifeline to Afghans” who lack food, health care and shelter.

The situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban came to power was one of the topics of discussion at a ministerial meeting in Geneva on Monday. UN chief Antonio Guterres emphasized the need to defend human rights, especially of women and girls.