UNICEF Warns Acute Child Malnutrition Worsening Across Afghanistan

Acute child malnutrition is worsening across much of Afghanistan, with an estimated 3.7 million children under the age of five at risk of acute malnutrition this year, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned in a report released on Sunday. In its report, ” Too Little, Too Late: The diet Crisis Facing Young Children in Afghanistan,” UNICEF said acute malnutrition has worsened in 26 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces compared with 2025. The agency warned that conditions are deteriorating even before the country’s annual peak malnutrition season, which typically runs from July through September. According to UNICEF, more than 80 percent of severe acute malnutrition cases occur among children younger than two years old, underscoring the heightened vulnerability of infants and toddlers during the most critical stage of physical and cognitive development. The agency said severe wasting, one of the deadliest forms of malnutrition, can rapidly become life-threatening if left untreated and significantly increases children’s risk of dying from common infectious diseases. UNICEF warned that children living in severely food-insecure households are up to six times more likely to suffer severe wasting during the peak malnutrition season. Many Afghan families, it said, have reduced the number of daily meals, cut nutrient-rich foods from their diets and are struggling to meet their children’s nutritional needs amid worsening economic conditions. “New evidence shows that children are approaching the nutrition crisis even before the seasonal peak begins, leaving only a narrow window for preventive action,” Tajudeen Oyewale, UNICEF’s Representative in Afghanistan, said in the report. Oyewale said declining meal frequency and reduced access to nutritious foods are early warning signs that severe child malnutrition could worsen without urgent intervention. UNICEF attributed the deteriorating situation to a combination of widespread food insecurity, disease outbreaks, low vaccination coverage, limited access to clean water and sanitation, and shrinking humanitarian funding. The agency called on international donors to increase support for nutrition prevention and treatment programmes, particularly for children aged six to 23 months and pregnant women. The warning comes days after the World Health Organization (WHO) said funding shortages had forced the suspension or closure of hundreds of health facilities across Afghanistan, including mobile health and nutrition teams that provide essential services in remote areas. Afghanistan remains one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, with millions of people relying on international assistance. UN agencies have repeatedly warned that continued funding shortfalls could further weaken the country’s health system, increase food insecurity and leave more children at risk of preventable illness and death. The post UNICEF Warns Acute Child Malnutrition Worsening Across Afghanistan appeared first on Khaama Press.