Humanitarians reach 8 mn Afghans in 3 months: UN

United Nations, Dec 10 (IANS) Humanitarian partners reached 8 million Afghans with food assistance, 150,000 people with relief items and 130,000 children with community-based education activities in the three-month period of September through November, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

In the period, more than 1.1 million people received primary and secondary health care services and more than 200,000 children were treated for acute malnutrition, Xinhua news agency quoted Dujarric as saying on Thursday.

In addition, 45,000 people received protection assistance, including cash, and 488,000 people received water, sanitation and hygiene assistance, he said.

Thanks to the continuing commitment of donors, the Afghan flash appeal launched after the Taliban takeover is more than 100 per cent funded, and the humanitarian response plan is 84 per cent funded, said the spokesman.

"With the worsening situation in the country, the humanitarian requirement is expected to triple in 2022. We count on continued commitment from donors to respond to the rising needs."

Humanitarians also noted that addressing the pressing financial crisis in Afghanistan, including the liquidity shortage, remains a critical priority, he said.

It is also critical that humanitarian operations are exempted from the scope of sanctions regimes so that scaled-up assistance can be delivered unhindered, the spokesman added.