Without Funding, WFP May Completely Withdraw From Afghanistan, Warns WFP Official
Cindy McCain, World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director, has warned that if the organisation cannot find funding, it will pull out of Afghanistan.
McCain told ABC News that the World Food Programme is facing its worst funding shortfall in its 60-year history.
"Unless we can build up some funding for Afghanistan, we'll have to pull completely out of the country," she told ABC.
In the interview, she emphasised that the World Food Programme is in a "desperate situation". According to McCain, there are currently many concerns regarding foreign aid to countries in need.
The WFP Executive Director warned that the organisation doesn’t even have enough funding to get through October.
After the takeover of power by the Taliban in 2021, poverty and hunger in Afghanistan increased drastically and the economy of the country faced a crisis.
With the restrictions imposed by the Taliban on women's work, the crisis of poverty and unemployment spread further.
Previously, WFP had said that more than 20 million people in Afghanistan are at risk of severe hunger.
Highlighting the Taliban’s restrictions on women’s right to work in Afghanistan, she said that WFP has been actively providing food support to women and children, and a potential withdrawal could lead to dire consequences of starvation and famine.
According to her, the war in Ukraine has somehow overshadowed the vast needs of the hungry around the world.
“We certainly understand the need to support Ukraine. But there's other hot spots in the world that are deeply and as much desperate as Ukraine is," she said.
