UN: 4.7m Afghan women and children face severe malnutrition

KABUL (TOLONews): The spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General has stated that one in every four people in Afghanistan is facing severe food insecurity, and more than 4.7 million women and children require urgent treatment for malnutrition.

Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, said: “Our colleagues at the World Food Programme warn that the country is facing a rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in 2025. WFP pointed out that this year has seen the highest spike in acute malnutrition ever recorded, with more than 4.7 million women and children in need of urgent treatment.”

Most of the malnourished children are being brought from various provinces to Indira Gandhi Children’s Hospital in Kabul for treatment.

Roh Afza, grandmother of a sick child, said: “His mother and father are poor. He became malnourished, and we brought him from Kunduz. The doctors there told his father to take him to hospitals in Kabul for admission.”

Bibi Sara, mother of another sick child, said: “We took him to hospitals in Panjshir and Kapisa, but it didn’t help. They told us to bring him to Kabul. We brought him here so he could recover.”

Doctors at Indira Gandhi Children’s Hospital also report a rise in the number of patients seeking treatment for malnutrition. They say three to five children with severe malnutrition are hospitalized each day.

Mohammad Arif Hasanzai, head of the hospital’s internal medicine department, said: “Mild and moderate malnutrition cases are few, and we don’t admit them. If they do come, we offer nutritional counseling and send them home. Our hospital has 20 beds for this purpose, and they are always occupied.”

Dr. Dost Mohammad Beikzada said: “One of the main causes we’ve investigated is that many of these children are fed a type of milk known as ‘Russian milk,’ sold by weight in markets. When they consume it, most of them develop swelling and malnutrition.”

Previously, Save the Children also reported that around 37,000 children under the age of five and 10,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women in earthquake-affected areas are suffering from acute malnutrition, and over 91,000 people are in need of nutritional support.