One million Afghan children face life-threatening malnutrition: UNICEF
UNICEF warns one million Afghan children face life-threatening malnutrition, as hospitals struggle with Afghanistan's worsening nutrition crisis.
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A malnourished child receives treatment at the Mirwais hospital in Kandahar last September 27. At the overcrowded hospital, the few remaining doctors and nurses tried urgently to treat skeletal babies and malnourished children packed side by side on beds.
AFP/File
One million children in Afghanistan face life-threatening malnutrition, the United Nations said on Tuesday, as a worsening nutrition crisis strains hospitals nationwide. UNICEF's Afghanistan country representative Tajudeen Oyewale said swift treatment is critical to prevent deaths among the acutely malnourished, in a crisis linked to economic collapse and years of conflict.
How many children in Afghanistan are malnourished?
Across Afghanistan, 3.7 million children currently suffer from wasting, meaning they are acutely malnourished, according to UNICEF. Of these, one million have severe acute malnutrition, the most dangerous form of the condition. Without urgent treatment, UNICEF warns these children face a serious risk of death in the coming months.
Oyewale delivered the warning at a media briefing in Geneva, speaking from Kabul. "If there is no treatment, and we are not able to act fast, that one million number are at risk of dying," he said. Afghanistan has endured repeated hunger crises in recent decades through civil war and other upheavals, and an economic collapse followed the Taliban government's return to power after US-led forces withdrew in 2021.
Why are young children most at risk?
Nearly 40 percent of children admitted to hospitals with severe wasting and medical complications are babies under six months old, Oyewale said. Children under two years old make up more than 80 percent of all severe acute malnutrition cases recorded in the country. Malnutrition plays a central role in the growing number of deaths among very young children, he added.
How are Afghan hospitals coping with the malnutrition crisis?
More than half a million children have been admitted to hospital so far this year for high-risk, moderate, or severe wasting, Oyewale said, describing a worsening nutrition crisis across the country. Around 6,000 cases were recorded in July 2025, compared with more than 8,000 in July this year, a rise of about a third. In parts of southern Afghanistan, some hospitals are now treating three or four severely malnourished children for every available bed, he warned.
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