United Nations Strategic Framework for Afghanistan
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UNITED NATIONS STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR AFGHANISTAN
2022, reconfirmed the ban on Afghan girls' secondary school education. In December 2022, the de
facto authorities closed universities to female students across the country.
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Economic shocks, drought, and other natural disasters have overtaken conflict as the primary drivers
of humanitarian need. 4 The impact of the multi-faceted economic crisis; increasing drought frequency
and intensity likely to be exacerbated by the impacts of climate change; human, plant, and animal
disease outbreaks; and lingering effects of decades of conflict, as well as the consequences of the war
in Ukraine on already high food prices, have resulted in almost half of the population facing acute
levels of food insecurity, with women and girls being disproportionately affected.5 By mid-2022, two
thirds of Afghan households could not afford food and other basic non-food items.6
In 2023, 875,000 children are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition and 2.3 million
children and 840,000 women from moderate acute malnutrition. Prevalence for acute malnutrition
for children ages 0-59 months is 10.3 per cent, with severe acute malnutrition at 1.5 per cent.7
Stunting prevalence for children under-5 years is 32.7 per cent, with 9.9 per cent being severe. The
prevalence of acute malnutrition for pregnant and lactating women is 20.7 per cent.
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This dire situation has forced families to resort to emergency livelihood coping strategies - including
harmful practices such as early and forced marriage in the absence of any functional safety nets.³
Without viable alternatives for farmers, opium poppy cultivation increased by 32 per cent in 2022 over
the previous year to 56,000 hectares, the third largest area under cultivation since monitoring began
in 1994.9
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The economic crisis, erratic governance by the de facto authorities, the emigration of many civil
servants, and deepening discriminatory policies — particularly against women and girls and ethnic and
religious minorities
have further eroded already weak public service delivery capacities. This makes
it more difficult for people in Afghanistan to have equitable access to health, education, water and
sanitation, social protection, justice, and protection services, with severe consequences for the
fulfilment of human rights, human development, and longer-term national stability and prosperity.
The erosion of rule of law under the de facto authorities, including the lack of a constitutional
framework, has worsened the business environment and impeded private sector investment. An
alternative path is available for economic growth, improved revenues, and regional engagement, but
this path is conditioned on inclusivity, the rule of law, respect for human rights, and the rights of
women and girls, particularly for the rights to food, health, and education.
While the situation in the country affects all people in Afghanistan to varying extents, some groups
are particularly vulnerable and marginalized, requiring specific attention to ensure they are not left
behind or exposed to ever-greater threats to their security. These groups include women and girls,
children, youth, refugees, internally displaced persons; migrants; ethnic and religious minorities
including Hazara Shias, Sufis, and Sikhs; nomadic pastoralist populations; persons with disabilities;
4 REACH (2022). Whole of Afghanistan Assessment 2022.
5 Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (2022). Afghanistan, IPC Acute Food Insecurity Analysis, September-October 2022.
6 World Bank (2023). Afghanistan Country Website. Available at https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/afghanistan/overview
7 Afghanistan Nutrition Cluster (2022). Afghanistan National Nutrition SMART Survey.
8 WFP (2022). Pre-Lean Seasonal Assessment.
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UNODC (2022). Opium Production in Afghanistan: Latest Findings and Emerging Threats.View entire presentation