Nearly five million people across Afghanistan have been impacted by climate-related disasters so far this year, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Wednesday.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, the IOM reported that widespread flooding and avalanches in the first three months of 2025 triggered mass displacement and worsened humanitarian conditions across the country.
According to the agency, approximately 175,000 people were internally displaced during the first quarter, with 79 precent of those displacements linked to climate events and natural disasters. An additional 396,000 people were forced to migrate due to related pressures.
The United Nations said rural communities have borne the brunt of the devastation, with many losing their homes and struggling to access safe drinking water.
The IOM highlighted that food insecurity remains the most pressing concern, with 47 percent of affected communities identifying food shortages as their greatest challenge.
Afghanistan ranks among the ten countries most severely impacted by the effects of climate change, which include prolonged droughts, irregular rainfall, flooding, and declining water resources.
Earlier this year, Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, warned that the country is facing intensifying climate shocks and accelerating environmental degradation.
