The state of humanitarian aid in Afghanistan

In August 2021, Afghanistan once again fell under Taliban rule following the withdrawal of American troops from the country. This has put decades of development and humanitarian work at risk, as donors struggle at finding a way to continue their activities in the country while working with the Taliban. In the last few months, institutions such as banking and health care have started to collapse, and the hunger crisis has worsened. However, the crisis in Afghanistan has been pushed out of the headlines by the recent events in Ukraine, leading some in the sector to worry that funding for Afghanistan will be neglected. A recent summit to pledge aid to Afghanistan fell $2 billion short of what the United Nations said was needed. Devex examined data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to understand the current state of aid in Afghanistan. The analysis found that development funding has been steadily decreasing for several years, while humanitarian funding is going in the opposite direction. In 2021, a strong humanitarian response plan and a flash appeal later in the year were both oversubscribed, but this year, the story looks likely to be different. Development vs. humanitarian funding OECD data shows that before the Taliban takeover, development funding to Afghanistan has been decreasing steadily — from $6.6 billion in 2011 to $4.4 billion in 2019. Preliminary data shows that funding for the country in 2020 plummeted even more, amounting to $2.2 billion. In contrast, humanitarian funding to the country has increased. In 2011 it was $894.7 million. By last year that had more than doubled. How much funding is being provided? Data on humanitarian aid in Afghanistan is available through the Financial Tracking Services, which is managed by UNOCHA. Through the FTS, donors and implementing partners can monitor the progress of funding against the U.N.’s humanitarian response plan, or HRP, which is an annual plan to respond to an emergency that requires international assistance. In 2021, the HRP target for Afghanistan was $868.7 million. A further flash appeal, announced in response to the crisis caused by U.S. withdrawal, sought another $606.3 million. But the amount given significantly exceeded these targets. Funding provided through the HRP and flash appeal totaled $1.97 billion, based on the latest data from FTS. Other funding was provided outside these routes, taking the total tracked by the FTS to $2.2 billion. Flash appeal UNOCHA FTS data from 2021 shows that $1.1 billion was committed through the flash appeal, 86.8% more than the original appeal. Of this, $667.3 million has been disbursed. Germany was the biggest bilateral donor, with $239.5 million. Other top contributors include the United States, with $190.2 million, and the United Kingdom, with $136.6 million. The European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations — the EU’s aid agency — made the biggest commitment among multilateral institutions, with $82.1 million. The U.N. Central Emergency Response Fund followed, with $68.7 million, then the European Commission, with $56.3 million. The World Food Programme was the biggest implementing partner, receiving $419.5 million. The Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund followed, with $187.4 million, and the International Organization for Migration, with $29.2 million. The implementing partners for $209.3 million of aid remain undisclosed, while a further $115.9 million was allocated to unspecified U.N. agencies. Most of the activities for the flash appeal focus on providing food aid. Humanitarian response plan In addition to the flash appeal, $835.8 million has been committed through the HRP. Of this, $442.7 million, or 53%, has been disbursed. The U.S. made the biggest commitment among bilateral donors, worth $235.2 million, and has disbursed $116.9 million, almost half. Denmark ranked next, with $40.3 million, then France, with $36.6 million. DG ECHO was the biggest multilateral donor, with $183.7 million. UNICEF, which is also among the top implementing partners, ranked next with $42.1 million, then the U.N. Central Emergency Response Fund, with $39.9 million. Meanwhile, the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund reported a total commitment of $35.8 million, all of which has been disbursed. U.N. agencies were among the top implementers of humanitarian activities in the country. The biggest chunk, worth $178.2 million, went to WFP. Of this, $143.3 million was allocated for agriculture, food security, and nutrition. A further $21.8 million went to humanitarian assistance and the rest for administration costs, such as aviation services for personnel and humanitarian cargo. The UN Refugee Agency ranked next, with $112.8 million, then UNICEF, with $70.7 million, and the Food and Agriculture Organization, with $50.5 million. Among NGOs, the Norwegian Refugee Council received the biggest share, worth $14.2 million, which includes $10.3 million worth of core contributions from Norway and Sweden. The rest was allocated to other areas such as education and protection. Other private implementing partners included the Danish Refugee Council, with $6 million, HALO Trust, with $5.1 million, and Save the Children, with $4.8 million. The implementing partners for $209.8 million of aid remain undisclosed. Top activities Below are the biggest humanitarian activities that were reported to UNOCHA’s FTS in 2021: Flash appeal: • $76.2 million from DG ECHO to undisclosed implementing partners. The specific activities to be funded also remain unspecified. • $69.8 million from Germany to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund as core contribution to the Afghanistan Common Humanitarian Fund. • $56.3 million from the European Commission to WFP for food security. • $45.2 million from the U.K. to WFP for food security. • $37.6 million from Germany to WFP for food security. Humanitarian response plan: • $71 million from DG ECHO to unspecified U.N. agencies and NGOs to support nutrition in the country. • $55.5 million from the U.S. to WFP for food security and agriculture. • $34.4 million from France to UNHCR as contribution to the humanitarian appeal. • $33 million from the U.S. to WFP for food security. • $24.4 million from the U.S. to undisclosed U.N. agencies and NGOs for health and protection. What about 2022? Based on UNOCHA’s estimate, $4.4 billion is needed to respond to Afghanistan’s humanitarian needs in 2022. But even before the crisis in Ukraine, donations were below the levels needed to hit this target. So far, with more than a quarter of the year gone, only $632.5 million, or 14.2% of the total amount needed, has been committed through the HRP, with $235.7 million already disbursed. The U.S. remains the top donor, with $308.9 million channeled through IOM, UNICEF, WFP, and other NGOs yet to be identified. Other top country donors include the U.K., with $113.5 million; Canada, with $60.5 million; and Japan with $15.4 million. So far, only two multilateral institutions have reported to the FTS for 2022: the Asian Development Bank, with $65 million, and the European Commission, with $12.4 million. U.N. agencies remain the top implementers, with $370.1 million going to WFP, $72.7 million to FAO, and $42.9 million to UNICEF. Try out Devex Pro Funding today with a free five-day trial, and explore funding opportunities from over 850 sources in addition to our analysis and news content.