Concern makes £1m Afghanistan appeal

Concern has made a £1 million emergency appeal to help the people of Afghanistan. Four million people in the country are at risk from conflict, drought and food shortages, according to the Irish aid agency.

The United Nations has described the situation in Afghanistan as "the worst humanitarian crisis in the world". The World Food Programme says over three million people in Afghanistan depend on emergency food aid.

A second successive year of drought and over 20 years of war between the ruling Taliban militia and opposition forces have forced an estimated 200,000 refugees to seek food and shelter in neighbouring Pakistan.

Concern has allocated an initial £250,000 to the crisis and plans to conduct a nutrition survey in parts of the country affected.

The aid agency’s appeal follows a visit by a senior staff member to Afghanistan in May. Ms Aine Doody, Concern Desk Officer for Afghanistan, has said the effects of drought are "catastrophic" in a country where 85 per cent of the population are dependent on agriculture.