04 October 2001

USAID Reports on Afghan Emergency

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) reports that international food deliveries into Afghanistan are averaging about 500 metric tons of commodities each day. Food deliveries resumed October 1 after shipments stopped for several weeks in September due to a lack of transportation and fuel, and the closure of the border with Pakistan.

In an October 4 summary report of the unfolding emergency in Central Asia, USAID reports that international aid agencies estimate that up to 7.5 million people are vulnerable to famine, 6 million in Afghanistan and 1.5 million refugees outside the country's borders. The emergency is brought on by 22 years of war and three years of drought which have depleted food supplies in the country.

U.S. government agencies have contributed nearly $184 million to the Afghan relief effort so far this year. The Bush administration announced October 3 another $300 million in forthcoming aid. The United States has led the international response to the mounting emergency in this Central Asian nation.

The flow of refugees out of Afghanistan dates to the Soviet occupation from 1979-1989. Civil war and drought in the ensuing years led to further displacement in this nation of 26 million people, according to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

The following terms are used in USAID texts summarizing the emergency situation in Afghanistan and the international response:

• IDP's: Internally displaced persons

• MSF: Medecin Sans Frontiere

• MT: metric ton

• UNICEF: United Nations Children's Fund

After 22 years of war, three years of severe drought, and five years of Taliban rule, Afghanistan now faces a major famine. The U.N. Security Council has pointed to the Taliban's repressive policies and harassment of expatriate relief agency workers as being directly responsible for the current crisis.

Because of the Taliban, the world is likely to see death and starvation on a massive scale as Afghanistan enters the coming winter. Islam promotes charity, yet the Taliban has cut off humanitarian assistance to the Afghan population.

The United States is prepared to contribute an additional $320 million in humanitarian assistance for the Afghanistan and neighboring states suffering from drought. The total includes $25 million authorized on September 28 by the President from the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund to provide assistance to a potentially large number of refugees who could cross from Afghanistan into the surrounding countries, including Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Additional assistance totaling $295 million will be provided through United Nations assistance agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, nongovernmental organizations, and through direct provision of food and relief supplies.

The United States has led the international community's response to the suffering of the Afghan people.

The United States has contributed more than $1 billion in humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people since 1979, more than any other country.

Since the beginning of fiscal year 2001, the United States provided nearly $184 million in humanitarian aid to Afghans. This amount includes contributions from the U.S. Department of Agriculture ($99.8 million), the U.S. Agency for International Development ($50.55 million), the Department of State ($32.6 million); and the Centers for Disease Control ($569,000).

The United States has supplied more than 80 percent of all food shipments sent to vulnerable Afghans through the United Nations' World Food Program, and will continue to be the leading food donor to the Afghan people.

BACKGROUND

Two decades of war in Afghanistan, including a decade-long Soviet occupation and ensuing civil strife, have left Afghanistan impoverished and mired in an extended humanitarian crisis. Government infrastructure, including the ability to deliver the most basic health, education, and other social services, has collapsed. Significant resources are directed to the war effort. Severe restrictions by the Taliban, including a restriction on women working outside the home, have added to the impact of poverty, particularly on the many households lacking able-bodied adult men. The Taliban now controls about 90 percent of Afghanistan's territory.

Humanitarian prospects worsened sharply in Afghanistan in September 2001 due to developments both inside and outside the country. Osama bin Laden, who currently resides in Afghanistan under Taliban protection, is the leading suspect in the September 11 terrorist attack against the United States. Fears of a possible U.S. reprisal have triggered a population exodus from major Afghan cities, both towards other points in Afghanistan and towards the country's borders. International staff of most relief agencies have also withdrawn, leaving the status of relief programs in question at a critical moment. In addition, even prior to the September 11 there were signs that relations between the international community and the Taliban were worsening significantly. These new developments added to an existing crisis of extensive displacement stemming from civil conflict and a debilitating three-year drought. The new crisis has also threatened to affect the entire region, with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) predicting the influx of up to 1.5 million refugees to neighboring countries in the event of substantial new conflict in Afghanistan.

CURRENT SITUATION

National Overview: U.N. Agencies issued a "Donor Alert" on September 27, calling for more than $584 million in funding for humanitarian assistance and protection programs for up to 7.5 million Afghans, including up to 6 million vulnerable people inside Afghanistan and up to another 1.5 million refugees outside Afghanistan's borders. The 1.5 million includes UNHCR estimates of a possible influx of up to 1 million refugees into Pakistan; 400,000 into Iran; 50,000 into Tajikistan; and 50,000 into Turkmenistan.

Since September 11, substantial population displacements have taken place from the major Afghan cities of Kabul, Jalalabad, Herat, and Kandahar due to fear of a possible U.S. retaliatory strike. Taliban conscription efforts in Kabul and Herat were reportedly an additional factor in spurring displacement. Despite the exodus, there were also reports that some people had begun to return to these cities as the fear of an imminent attack subsided.

A Taliban edict banning almost all communications with entities outside Afghanistan continued to hamper efforts to maintain international humanitarian programs with local staff. The exception to the communication ban has been Herat, where the U.N. was permitted use of one radio set under Taliban supervision. UNOCHA reported that a similar arrangement has been agreed upon in Kabul, where a radio will be set up for U.N. staff use inside a Taliban ministry building. Relief agencies continue to explore options for communications that would be acceptable to the Taliban, including the use of public call boxes under Taliban supervision.

Food Security: On October 1, 218 MT of U.N. World Food Program (WFP) food aid transported from Pakistan arrived in Kabul. This shipment was the first new food aid delivery since WFP halted cross-border food transport on September 12, citing the closure of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, fuel shortages, and a lack of commercial trucks. Following WFP's resumption of cross-border transport, an estimated 2,500 MT of new food aid is now in transit or has been delivered within Afghanistan. WFP reported October 4 that its food deliveries now average 500 MT per day, sufficient to feed an estimated one million people, and WFP is increasing deliveries with a goal of 52,000 MT of food per month.

WFP food assistance now arriving in country is being delivered through Pakistan, with additional shipments planned through Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Iran for the north, northeastern, and western provinces. Food assistance is being delivered to beneficiaries through WFP's local NGO partners. However, in certain areas, such as Chagcharan in Ghor, a lack of partners is making distribution difficult.

On October 4, WFP announced a new Emergency Operation (EMOP) that will feed 7.5 million Afghans, including 6 million vulnerable people inside Afghanistan and up to 1.5 million Afghans outside the country's borders. WFP also announced a Special Operation that will provide region-wide logistical support, telecommunications, humanitarian air passenger and cargo transport, trucking, and security.

Pakistan: As of October 3, UNHCR's tally of known refugee arrivals in Pakistan since September 11 had not risen above 20,000. Reportedly, thousands more have crossed the border at informal points. Most of these are believed to be staying with host families among the old caseload refugee population. An additional population of 20,000 Afghans that had been waiting on the Afghan side of the Chaman border crossing near Quetta has reportedly departed; many returned home, while others have crossed informally into Pakistan.

As part of its planning for a potentially much larger influx of up to 1 million refugees to Pakistan, UNHCR has identified 28 camp sites in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province as of October 4, and was also continuing preparations for new camps in Baluchistan Province, where most new arrivals since September 11 have entered Pakistan. To date, UNHCR reported that it has stockpiled more than 8,000 tents in Pakistan, and expects to have 73,000 tents, sufficient for up to 400,000 people, available by the end of November. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reported October 3 that it is also planning to assist up to 200,000 refugees in Pakistan. IFRC plans to work with the Pakistani Red Crescent Society to provide tents, blankets, clothing, primary health care, and water/sanitation support, as well as to address other refugee-related needs that may arise. IFRC's region-wide contingency plans include the assistance of up to 500,000 refugees.

According to a press report, Pakistani health authorities have reported an outbreak of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, an Ebola-like disease that damages the circulatory system and eventually causes the collapse of major organs. Some 40 suspected cases and 11 deaths have been reported since June in Quetta, raising fears of an epidemic if a new refugee influx occurs in this area. The U.N. World Health Organization (WHO) has not confirmed the outbreak.

Iran: There have been no new reports of refugees arriving in Iran. The Government of Iran (GOI) has continued to express a desire to assist Afghans on the Afghanistan side of the border, rather than admitting any new refugees. Nonetheless, joint UNHCR-GOI contingency planning for a possible influx of up to 400,000 Afghans has continued. As of September 25, UNHCR and the GOI had identified 12 potential camp sites in Iran's Khorassan and Sistan-Baluchistan provinces to house a potential refugee influx. UNHCR has airlifted contingency supplies to Iran, including tents and other shelter materials.

Central Asia: Some 10,000 IDPs who have resided on islands in the Pyandj River along the Afghan-Tajik border since September 2000 remain in place. Tajikistan's border has remained closed to this population, as well as to any other refugees, and Tajikistan's government has re-asserted that Tajikistan is unable to accept new arrivals due to conditions there. Tajikistan is currently experiencing a severe drought that has affected up to one million people. UNHCR contingency plans call for up to 50,000 refugees to Tajikistan.

IOM plans to establish teams for cross-border assistance to Afghanistan's northern provinces of Faryab and Kunduz from Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan will also serve as a staging ground for WFP food shipments to northern Afghanistan, as well as refugee contingency efforts and cross-border operations by relief agencies such UNICEF, which is sending medical supplies sufficient for 100,000 people for three months, plus sanitation and shelter supplies; and MSF, which is sending emergency relief supplies to Ashgabat.

Afghanistan: Central, Southern, Eastern. According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), commercial activities around the southern city of Kandahar are reported to have dropped by 90 percent since September 11. At least half the population of Kandahar left the city after that date due to fears of an imminent U.S. attack. The region surrounding Kandahar has suffered the effects of drought as well as the economic impact of a Taliban ban on poppy cultivation. Although a recent request by the U.N. Deputy Regional Coordinator to visit U.N. offices in Kandahar seized by the Taliban was rebuffed, authorities have assured the U.N. that their local staff and property are safe.

In central Afghanistan, people have continued to leave Kabul for rural areas, according to the U.N. Families have been reported to be moving towards the central Hazarajat region, and there are new reports that some 50 to 70 families from Kabul per day are arriving in the Panjshir Valley as well. Both the Northern Alliance-controlled Panjshir Valley and Hazarajat are difficult to access in winter. The key supply route to the Panjshir from the northeast becomes impassable in winter, raising concerns about the feasibility of providing assistance to a growing IDP population there. Action Contre la Faim (ACF) is currently distributing 1,300 MT of WFP food in the Panjshir Valley. According to the U.N., both the Eastern and Central Regions are experiencing pressure on rural health facilities as the population of displaced persons from Kabul grows; the number of patients in rural clinics in the Eastern Region has reportedly doubled.

WFP warned October 4 that Afghanistan's central highlands will become inaccessible for food deliveries once snows begin in mid-November, cutting off up to 100,000 families from food assistance. WFP is planning airdrops to this region, but will require safe air corridors, approval from Afghan authorities, and local staff support for drop zones. WFP is also considering "snow drops" of food that do not require drop zones.

Afghanistan: Northern Region and Northeast. There are currently up to an estimated 300,000 IDPs in the Northern Region, displaced by a combination of drought and conflict. There are no reports of additional displacement related to the events of September 11. In the relatively small Northern Alliance-controlled Northeastern Region, there have been no reports of population movements to date. IDPs in the Northeastern Region number an estimated 84,000, according to UNOCHA; the leading cause of displacement has been conflict.

WFP warned that some 400,000 people in the Northern Region provinces of Balkh and Faryab were in danger of running out of their own food stocks as well as food aid by the end of the week of October 1. WFP has commenced food deliveries from Turkmenistan to respond to this situation.

The U.N. reported October 3 that malaria is a growing concern in northern and northeastern provinces, as well as the Eastern Region near Jalalabad. According to UNOCHA, relief agencies are distributing 10,000 bed nets to IDPs in the north and northeast, and WHO sub-offices have pre-positioned anti-malarial drugs.

In Baghlan Province, the U.N. reported that Taliban officials took over the office of HALO Trust, a British demining organization partnered with the U.N. Mine Action Program.

Afghanistan: Western Region. UNOCHA reported September 25 that Taliban recruitment efforts in Herat are generating increasing concern among the civilian population of Herat and surrounding provinces. The IDP influx to Herat, which during the summer months sometimes reached 300 persons per day, has virtually stopped. Reportedly, IDPs are beginning to leave Herat's camps for home areas.

USG HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

On October 4, President George W. Bush announced a $320 million assistance program for Afghanistan. Funding will support assistance to Afghans both inside and outside Afghanistan's borders, with support for food and a wide variety of other relief needs. On October 4, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Christina B. Rocca redeclared a complex humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan for FY 2002. U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan William B. Milam issued a disaster declaration for Afghan refugees in Pakistan on February 2, 2001. To date, FY 2001 and FY 2002 USG humanitarian assistance provided by USAID/OFDA, USAID/FFP, USAID/Democracy & Governance (DG), USDA, the Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (State/PRM), the joint Department of State/Department of Defense Demining Program, the Department of State's Bureau International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (State/INL) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) totals $185,147,625, including both assistance inside Afghanistan and assistance to Afghan refugees in neighboring countries.

Despite the pullout of international humanitarian personnel from Afghanistan, the USG remains committed to assisting vulnerable Afghans.