Support Children in Afghanistan | UNICEF
The children of Afghanistan are facing dire and unprecedented circumstances. Children are displaced from their families and lack necessities like food, water, clothes and shelter. More than half of all families in Afghanistan require urgent humanitarian assistance.
Every other child under age 5 in the country is acutely malnourished.
Your donation will help secure a brighter future for children in Afghanistan.
What is UNICEF doing to help children in Afghanistan?
UNICEF is on the ground in Afghanistan providing urgent support for children and families in all areas of need, including safe water, education, nutrition and health care. The organization has been working in Afghanistan for decades, and has 13 offices across the country.
Together with partners, UNICEF works to build trust in communities and advance local solutions that best support and protect children.
UNICEF's cash transfer program reduces child protection-related risks by helping vulnerable families pay for essential goods and services. Each household receives a monthly stipend of $90 per month. © UNICEF/UN0716662/Bidel
History of UNICEF’s dedication to children in Afghanistan
UNICEF's mission in Afghanistan covers all major programming areas: education, health, nutrition, water and sanitation, protection and social support. UNICEF's work in the country includes:
Supporting health and well-being of children and mothers
- improving access to quality health care for children and pregnant women
- deploying mobile health teams to underserved areas
- immunizing children against vaccine-preventable diseases
- screening children for malnutrition and treating severe acute cases
- improving child nutrition with micronutrient supplements and powders
- improving access to safe drinking water by supporting repairs to damaged infrastructure and building new supply infrastructure
- distributing hygiene kits to displaced families to help curb spread of disease
Children and families displaced by flash flooding in Khoshi district, Logar Province, received hygiene kits, health care and nutrition support from UNICEF. © UNICEF/UN0694154/Qayoumi
Protecting childhoods
- establishing Child-Friendly Spaces for play, education and psychosocial support to children impacted by conflict and displacement
- supporting adolescents returning home after seeking work in neighboring countries, providing skills training and helping them reintegrate and reunite with their families
- partnering with local communities to prevent child marriage, violent corporal punishment, child labor and domestic abuse
- expanding access to mental health services for children in need
Ensuring every child has access to an education
- equipping students with textbooks and other learning supplies
- training female teachers — important for girls to attend and stay in school
- increasing education opportunities to reach children who are currently not in school; this includes supporting community-based schools and alternative learning centers to ensure education is more accessible to students in remote and other underserved areas
How you can help
Children in Afghanistan urgently need help. Support UNICEF’s efforts to meet the humanitarian needs of 15 million people, including 8 million children in Afghanistan. Donate today.
Five-month-old Sabera is cradled in the arms of her mother, 30-year-old Bakht Bibi, at Paktia Regional Hospital in Gardez, Afghanistan. Sabera is staying in the hospital to be treated for severe acute malnutrition. ©UNICEF/UN0690370/Bidel
How donations have helped children in Afghanistan in 2022
Some examples of UNICEF's impact so far this year:
- More than 300,000 children under age 5 have been treated for severe acute malnutrition
- 3.5 million people have better access to safe drinking water
- 17.3 million people have received out-patient health care services
- humanitarian cash transfers have helped 100,000 families meet basic needs
Learn more
Afghanistan Refugees: Help Safe Refugee Children
There are millions of Afghanistan refugees. UNICEF is working to meet their urgent needs.
A Safe Place for Girls and Boys to Learn and Play in Afghanistan
In Afghanistan, UNICEF-supported Child-Friendly Spaces provide children with learning and recreational materials for children to play and learn, offering hope and encouragement to children like 7-year-old Nabeela.
UNICEF Mobile Health Teams Reach Children in Need in Rural Afghanistan
Every child and mother should be able to access basic health care. UNICEF is working to make this possible by supporting mobile teams of health and nutrition specialists to support families in remote communities.
HOW TO HELP
There are many ways to make a difference
War, famine, poverty, natural disasters — threats to the world's children keep coming. But UNICEF won't stop working to keep children healthy and safe.
UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories — more places than any other children's organization. UNICEF has the world's largest humanitarian warehouse and, when disaster strikes, can get supplies almost anywhere within 72 hours. Constantly innovating, always advocating for a better world for children, UNICEF works to ensure that every child can grow up healthy, educated, protected and respected.
Would you like to help give all children the opportunity to reach their full potential? There are many ways to get involved.
