KABUL - Afghan charity organization, the Bayat Foundation, stepped in to help needy Afghans again this week when they distributed food packages to victims of recent floods and conflict in the Surobi district of Kabul province.
According to Haji Mohammad Ismail, deputy head of the organization, “the Bayat Foundation continues its assistance to flood victims – the same as we did with aid to other flood-affected people in Parwan and Maidan Wardak [provinces].”
“Today we are distributing food supplies including flour, rice, cooking oil, and pasta to vulnerable [families] who have been affected by the recent flash floods in Surobi district of Kabul province,” he said.
In the past few months, dozens of families have been displaced in the Surobi district due to conflict and floods. As such, Surobi District Governor Shah Mahmood Ibrahimkhail welcomed the assistance and thanked the organization for its help.
He also asked that the foundation, along with other organizations, continue to help vulnerable families in affected communities.
Recipients of the foundation’s food packages also voiced their appreciation stating many people had lost everything in the recent floods and many have no shelter and some have no food.
In late August close to 200 people died in flash floods that devastated large parts of 13 provinces in the country.
Thousands of homes were either damaged or destroyed and scores of farmers lost crops following days of torrential rain.
In addition to this, many communities in the same areas and in other parts of the country continue to be affected by the ongoing conflict.
In a statement issued last week, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that as of September 20, more than 172,000 people had been displaced by conflict this year.
An estimated 4.5 million people have been displaced since 2012, with many of them living in informal settlements with few, if any, basic social services.
OCHA also stated that the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan for Afghanistan requires US$1.1 billion, targeting more than 11 million people. To date, only $339 million has been received. (ATN)