World Food Program may withdraw from Afghanistan over budget shortfall

The World Food Program (WFP) has warned that if it does not secure sufficient funding to assist those in need in Afghanistan, it will be forced to halt its operations there.

Cindy McCain, the Executive Director of the World Food Program, has described the organization’s budget reduction as unprecedented and “discouraging” in a conversation with the American news network ABC News.

She emphasized that the World Food Program’s situation has been at its worst in the past 60 years due to budget shortages, with the most significant contributing factors being the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and conflict.

According to the Executive Director of the World Food Program, countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Jordan, Palestine, South Sudan, Somalia, and Syria face reduced humanitarian assistance due to budget constraints.

The World Food Program also added that it needed more funding to cover its operations in Afghanistan beyond October. The organization will be compelled to leave the country if the budget is not secured.

This comes as the World Food Program had previously highlighted the adverse economic conditions and climate changes negatively impacting the lives of people in Afghanistan, forcing 15 million people to go to bed hungry every night.

The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan has led to a dire humanitarian crisis due to a combination of factors. International sanctions and isolation have severely impacted the country’s economy.

Additionally, women being banned from education and working with aid organizations have exacerbated the situation, leaving Afghanistan in a precarious state.

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