The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations on Thursday reported that 9.4 million people in rural Afghanistan remain “acutely food insecure.”
Despite ongoing efforts, the FAO noted that significant challenges persist in ensuring food security across the country.
Since 2022, the FAO has facilitated the movement of 8.5 million rural Afghans out of acute food insecurity, according to a statement from the agency posted on X.
The organization emphasized the importance of continued support for Afghanistan’s agriculture and food sectors, describing such assistance as “proven to work.”
“Wheat provides 70 percent of the calorie intake for Afghans,” the FAO noted, underscoring the staple’s critical role in the nation’s diet.
This report comes amid a broader humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recently estimated that nearly 24 million people across the country are in dire need of humanitarian aid.
Afghan citizens, meanwhile, have expressed frustration with the Taliban’s increasing restrictions, which they say have exacerbated the nation’s economic woes.
