Last updated: 13th May 2024

After enduring over six weeks of extreme weather and flash floods, provinces across Afghanistan were hit by the most severe flooding of the year this weekend, claiming the lives of over 300 people and damaging over 2000 homes.

Mobilising teams to conduct assessments in some of the hardest hit provinces, such as Badakhshan, Ghor and Herat, our teams have quickly mobilised to provide flexible cash assistance in some of the most impacted areas, enabling families to respond to their most pressing needs.

For latest updates on the impacts of the flooding in Ghor Province, please click here.

Afghanaid’s Project Manager, Mohammad Halim spoke of the devastation witnessed across the country, and the impact this disaster has had on the lives of ordinary Afghans: 

“These floods are another hardship for Afghan families. With lots of rainfall, floods and mudslides destroying the homes and agricultural fields of whole communities, men and women who were already finding it hard to feed their families are now left with nothing. For example, for families in Herat province, where the deadly earthquakes hit in October 2023, another devastating disaster could not have come at a worse time.”

Charles Davy, Afghanaid’s Managing Director, urges the international community to recognise these latest floods as yet another poignant reminder of the climate crisis’ deadly impacts on the countries who bear the least responsibility for it: 

“What we are now seeing is the dire effects of the climate crisis play out month by month in Afghanistan. This winter, there was climate-induced unpredictability with snow and rainfall - most of Afghanistan got around a third less precipitation between October 2023 to late January 2024 than is needed, with areas in northern and eastern Afghanistan recording historically low amounts. So there was wide speculation at that time that it was likely another drought would come, once again impacting harvests, and leaving many families facing food insecurity this year. Then, from the end of March right through to May, there has been well above average rainfall, with April being one of the wettest on record.

"But with droughts degrading the land on which rural families rely, it makes it hard for the ground to absorb rainwater, so when this year’s rain did come in the quantity and at the speed it did, in many areas flash floods washed away all that communities hold dear.

“With more than 23 million people across the country already requiring humanitarian assistance in 2024, these disasters are compounding existing needs and threaten to plunge thousands more families into insecurity. 

“We must renew our global commitment to decrease emissions, and provide comprehensive support to these communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis. By delivering locally-led climate adaptation programmes to restore landscapes and equip communities with the risk reduction tools they need to keep safe, we can begin to ensure Afghanistan’s families are better protected from climate change-induced disasters.”

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