Flood victims in Kabul recieving food assistance from WFPI realised today that it has been some time since I posted a "news" item, so I thought it was time to get back to the main focus of the blog!
About two weeks after flash floods and avalanches caused extensive damage across one third of Afghanistan, relief has reached almost all affected areas, say government and United Nations officials.
"Excluding Daykondi and Nooristan provinces, where we face severe logistical constrains, aid has been distributed to all flood and avalanches-hit provinces," Abdul Matin Adrak, director of the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA), told IRIN in the capital Kabul on Monday.
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported that foodstuffs sufficient for one month have been distributed in 77 districts of 13 affected provinces.
"We have a massive operation of assisting some 75,000 victims," Rick Corsino, WFP country director, said. "We have already distributed more than 1,000 metric tonnes of food items, which include wheat, beans, ghee and salt, and more are being distributed."
More than 80 people were killed and hundreds of houses destroyed by floods and avalanches that besieged Afghanistan recently.
But insecurity, logistical hurdles such as damaged roads and the limited capacity of provincial bodies slowed the humanitarian response in many affected regions.
According to Corsino, the sheer magnitude of the disaster was a challenge in itself and further complicated prompt relief in some remote districts.
On Friday, a WFP vehicle was attacked in the volatile Zabul province in the south. And a truck carrying aid to flood victims in Nimruz province was plundered by gunmen in neighbouring Farah province, the UN agency reported.
Officials warn that Afghanistan's floods season is not yet over. With spring rainfalls and temperatures rising, snow on the mountains can quickly melt and cause further flooding.
Published with the permission of IRIN
About two weeks after flash floods and avalanches caused extensive damage across one third of Afghanistan, relief has reached almost all affected areas, say government and United Nations officials.
"Excluding Daykondi and Nooristan provinces, where we face severe logistical constrains, aid has been distributed to all flood and avalanches-hit provinces," Abdul Matin Adrak, director of the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA), told IRIN in the capital Kabul on Monday.
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) reported that foodstuffs sufficient for one month have been distributed in 77 districts of 13 affected provinces.
"We have a massive operation of assisting some 75,000 victims," Rick Corsino, WFP country director, said. "We have already distributed more than 1,000 metric tonnes of food items, which include wheat, beans, ghee and salt, and more are being distributed."
More than 80 people were killed and hundreds of houses destroyed by floods and avalanches that besieged Afghanistan recently.
But insecurity, logistical hurdles such as damaged roads and the limited capacity of provincial bodies slowed the humanitarian response in many affected regions.
According to Corsino, the sheer magnitude of the disaster was a challenge in itself and further complicated prompt relief in some remote districts.
On Friday, a WFP vehicle was attacked in the volatile Zabul province in the south. And a truck carrying aid to flood victims in Nimruz province was plundered by gunmen in neighbouring Farah province, the UN agency reported.
Officials warn that Afghanistan's floods season is not yet over. With spring rainfalls and temperatures rising, snow on the mountains can quickly melt and cause further flooding.
Published with the permission of IRIN
Disclaimer: This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations
Photo: Copyright WFP
