(Last updated 23rd April)

At the end of March and throughout the month of April, numerous communities across Afghanistan have been experiencing devastating flash floods following heavy rainfall. This flooding has been recorded in more than 20 provinces, including the four areas where Afghanaid's provincial offices are based: Daykundi, Badakhshan, Ghor and Samangan. Weather forecasts predict more heavy rain across all of Afghanistan's 34 provinces in the coming week.

Whilst minor instances of flooding have been reported across the country earlier in the rainy season, this latest spate of heavy rainfall has been the most destructive of 2024 so far, with reports indicating that more than 900 houses have been destroyed or damaged, and around 35 people have sadly lost their lives. With OCHA reporting that over 63,700 acres of agricultural land has been destroyed and at least 470 livestock have been killed, as well as taking homes and lives, this latest bout of flash floods has severely disrupted farm-based livelihoods. Reliant on farm smallholdings to grow food to feed their families and sell at the market, a huge proportion of men and women across rural areas often have no alternative ways to make money when their agricultural land is destroyed.

This means their ability to eat well, afford basic necessities, and build a route out of extreme poverty is hugely compromised and additionally, leaves many families unable to afford to fix damage done to their homes by floods, leaving them no choice but to sleep in unsafe and exposed conditions.

Monitoring impacts in Daykundi province

Daykundi province was one of the provinces first hit by recent floods, a province in which we have held an office since 2018. Currently delivering six projects across the province, our local teams have been assessing the flooding’s impact on Daykundi’s most vulnerable communities, with project staff analysing how best we can support families to navigate this latest environmental challenge. It is currently estimated by Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority that at least 23 homes have been completely destroyed in the province, with 56 severely damaged across seven districts.

Photos from Khedir, one of Afghanaid’s target communities

Across Daykundi, following emergency needs assessments in 25 communities, our teams have found that over 3330 fruit and non-fruit trees have been washed away, 86 jeribs (around 43 acres) of agricultural land have been destroyed, and 610 livestock animals have been killed. With local crops, fruit and livestock all instrumental in feeding families and providing farmers with a source of income, food security in Daykundi province and the wider region will undoubtedly become further strained this year, and cycles of poverty will continue to deepen. 

To make matters worse, flood damage compounds the isolation of these remote, underserved areas, destroying crucial transport links to larger towns and cities. Daykundi’s infrastructure has been significantly weakened, with at least five bridges having collapsed, and 450 roads being wholly or partly washed away. Already one of the country’s most isolated provinces, without these links, families with high levels of need are unable to access vital services like hospitals, markets and schools. As a result of this inaccessibility, it is also very likely that the full extent of the floods’ damage in Daykundi is not yet fully understood. 

Our teams are also conducting emergency assessments in the other areas where we work, in order to provide the most effective support to communities at risk. 

No longer ‘natural’ disasters: how the climate crisis is fuelling humanitarian emergencies

The continued impacts of climate change across Afghanistan are making flash floods more frequent and severe. Rising temperatures and changing weather patterns are fuelling droughts, soil erosion and water scarcity, meaning when rain does fall, it cannot be absorbed by the dry, eroded soil below. This causes water to flow rapidly and cause acute damage to homes, land and people in its path, and also means that there is little water saved for future use, so that families to irrigate their land and water their livestock.

In simple terms, in Afghanistan, the climate crisis is being felt most acutely as a water crisis. Afghan households require sustained support to revitalising soil and landscaping hillsides to reduce the destructive impact of floods and recharge groundwater, as well as build irrigation canals, reservoirs, wells and dams to better manage and access water.

These interventions enable rural families to better protect their homes, lands and livelihoods from climate-induced disasters, whilst also decreasing poverty, food insecurity, and water scarcity. For over a decade, Afghanaid has been bringing climate adaptation initiatives to Afghanistan, providing communities on the frontlines of the crisis with the training and tools needed to build their resilience and thrive.

In the remote village of Anok, Daykundi province, women have been taking part in one of Afghanaid’s latest cash for work programmes - weaving gabion baskets to build check dams. Small barriers constructed of a series of gabion baskets, gabion check dams slow down water flowing from the hillsides, helping to prevent flash floods, and improving soil moisture. 

Whilst providing families with much needed avenues to earn an income, this inclusive and simple project ensured members of the community were integral stewards in building their own resilience to climate disasters, safeguarding their homes and livelihoods, and also supporting them to diversify and grow their skillsets. One participant, Gulsha, explained how her life had improved as a result: "Now that I have learnt the gabion weaving skill, I am happy to be working and receiving cash to spend it on family expenses. Drought has become a big problem here and this work will help counter that problem as vegetation will increase and floods will decrease."

Read more about the transformative climate work we do with rural communities

What can I do to help Afghans affected by crises?

As well as providing urgent relief to families in crisis, at Afghanaid we invest in long term solutions to help families adapt to the climate crisis. With your loyal support and led by local people, we can ensure more communities have the knowledge, infrastructure and resilience to tackle the complex challenges they face as the climate crisis intensifies, preventing flooding, reducing the destructive impacts of drought, and ensuring that inclusive, green solutions stand the test of time.

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