KABUL: The World Health Organization said Monday 80 percent of services that it supports in Afghanistan could shut down by June due to a funding shortage.
The UN health agency said the cash shortfall, which comes amid massive US aid cuts, is tied to a shift in “development aid priorities.”
“Without urgent intervention, over 220 more facilities could close by June 2025, leaving an additional 1.8 million Afghans without access to primary health care,” WHO said in a statement.
The agency said that 167 such operations have already closed due to a lack of financial support.
“The consequences will be measured in lives lost,” said WHO’s Afghanistan chief Edwin Ceniza Salvador.
“This is not just about funding. It is a humanitarian emergency that threatens to undo years of progress in strengthening Afghanistan’s health system,” Salvador added.
WHO has been sounding the alarm since US President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the United States from the agency.
This pullout and the end of Washington’s contributions put at risk the global measles surveillance network, which until now has been entirely funded by Washington.
Afghanistan saw more than 16,000 suspected measles cases and 111 deaths in January and February, according to WHO.
The figures are disputed by the Taliban authorities, who returned to power in 2021 with the ousting of the US-backed government.
The Taliban government is not recognized internationally and relies largely on NGOs, UN agencies and aid donors to keep the health system afloat.
WHO said Afghanistan is also facing “multiple health emergencies,” including outbreaks of malaria and dengue.
There are ongoing efforts to vaccinate enough children to eradicate polio, which remains endemic in only two countries: Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.
The lack of funds has also hit Save the Children, which said last week 18 health facilities supported by the charity and its partners have closed.
“Only 14 Save the Children clinics have enough funding to remain open for one more month, and without new financial support, they will be forced to close. These 32 clinics supported over 134,000 children in January alone,” the charity said.
In addition, Afghanistan suffers one of the world’s highest maternal mortality ratios of 638 per 100,000 live births.
This is likely to worsen due to the US funding cuts, with the UN forecasting an additional 1,200 maternal deaths between now and 2028.
Malnutrition is also widespread in the country, which is facing economic, humanitarian and climate crises after being battered by four decades of war.
Ten percent of children under five are malnourished and 45 percent are stunted, the UN says.
WHO says 80 percent of Afghanistan operations risk shutdown by June
https://arab.news/2kdav
WHO says 80 percent of Afghanistan operations risk shutdown by June
- The UN health agency has been sounding the alarm since US President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the agency
- This pullout and the end of Washington’s contributions put at risk the global measles surveillance network, which until now has been entirely funded by US
UK pro-Palestine campaign urges pressure on councillors ahead of elections
- They are being urged to commit to ‘upholding the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people’
- Research has revealed extensive ties between local council-administered pension funds, Israeli military
LONDON: The Palestine Solidarity Campaign on Wednesday launched a campaign urging local councillors across the UK to commit to “upholding the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.”
The Councillor Pledge for Palestine is the latest effort by the PSC to build pressure on the UK’s political system and encourage systemic change for the benefit of the Palestinian cause. It comes five months ahead of local elections.
Research conducted by the PSC has revealed extensive financial ties between local councils and the Israeli military.
Pension funds administered by councils invest more than £12.2 billion ($16.2 billion) in companies with direct complicity in Israel’s war in Gaza, which has been deemed by the International Court of Justice to plausibly constitute genocide and ethnic cleansing.
The PSC accused these companies of complicity in Israel’s “genocide, ethnic cleansing, military occupation and apartheid against Palestinians.”
Among the investments includes £450 million in BAE Systems, the British multinational that manufacturers components for the F-35 jet used by the Israeli Air Force. The Israeli F-35 variant has been used extensively throughout the Gaza war.
Councillors in the UK must “take all appropriate steps to ensure my council is not complicit in Israel’s violations of international law, including through the council divesting pensions and any other funds it administers from complicit companies,” the PSC’s pledge said.
The campaign is encouraging supporters to contact their local councillors and urge them to make the commitment.
Over the coming months, a list of councillors who have done so will be published, with the aim of building a network that supports Palestinian rights across the country.
Ben Jamal, the PSC’s director, said: “It is not just Westminster politicians who have enabled Britain’s complicity in Israel’s horrific crimes. That guilt extends to council chambers as well, with more than £12 billion of local government pension scheme funds invested in companies profiting from Israel's military occupation and system of apartheid against the Palestinian people.
“Our Councillor Pledge for Palestine gives elected representatives an opportunity to show their constituents they are on the right side of history and that they vow to end this complicity.”
More than three times as many voters support councils divesting pension funds from companies complicit in Israeli crimes than oppose it, according to polling conducted earlier this year on behalf of the PSC.
Of that figure, the ratio is six-to-one among Labour voters, seven-to-one among Liberal Democrats and 11-to-one among Greens.
An existing PSC campaign, Local Government Pension Scheme Divest, has led to 27 councils across the UK passing motions or releasing statements supporting the divestment of pension funds.
The campaign is inspired by an anti-apartheid effort launched in 1983, which at its height led to two-thirds of the British population living in areas administered by councils with anti-apartheid policies.
Nelson Mandela acknowledged the campaign’s influence when he visited the UK after his release from prison.
Jamal said: “After more than two years of Israel’s genocide — which continues to this day, despite the so-called ‘ceasefire’ — people up and down the country are demanding politicians stand up and be counted. Councillors across Britain should answer this call and pledge for Palestine today.”
