UN aid saves thousands of Zabul families from hunger during, beyond Ramadan

ZABUL -- The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is providing cash assistance to 31,000 needy families in Qalat city, the capital of Zabul province, and other Zabul districts.

Launched on April 5, the assistance will continue for a year.

The budget for this programme is 720 million AFN ($8.3 million), said Khalil Ahmad Hotak, director of UNICEF's office in Zabul.

"We identified the poor households through an assessment," he said. "Most of them do not even have dry bread to eat."

"The objective of providing them with cash assistance is to reduce poverty and hunger and prevent immigration by Afghans," he added.

A total of 23,400 AFN ($272) will be distributed to each household in six phases -- 3,900 AFN ($45) every two months.

Most households receiving cash assistance from UNICEF are the relatives of members of former Afghan security forces who were killed on duty, families affected by drought, or individuals who have lost their jobs, Hotak said.

The World Food Programme (WFP) is also helping Zabul families by distributing food items during the month of Ramadan.

Mohammad Amir, director of the Zabul Department of Economy, said 3,148 households have been covered by the programme.

Each family receives 50kg of flour, 5kg of oil, 6kg of chickpeas and food supplements for children, he said.

"The food items are distributed to households that have not had any food to eat during the month of Ramadan," Amir said.

"The food aid allows poor families to have food for iftar (the meal they have when they break their fast) and for suhur (their midnight meal)," he said.

'Never witnessed such poverty'

Zabul families receiving assistance from the UN programmes said they are grateful to have food on their table during Ramadan.

Abdul Manan, 65, a labourer and the breadwinner of a seven-member family, said he really needed this assistance.

"I am very happy about the assistance. I couldn't even afford to buy a bag of flour [to bake] dry bread for my family."

"Because of financial problems, I cannot buy food items such as oil and rice," he said.

"The majority of [Afghans] have fallen into poverty recently, and most of them do not even have enough food for one night."

"[Afghans] would starve to death if it were not for the aid agencies' assistance," Abdul Manan said, adding, "Afghans have never witnessed such poverty and famine."

Abdul Manan said that in the past, he would do different jobs to provide for his family, but jobs have become scarce in the last two years and food prices have gone up.

Khair Mohammad, 52, who has received a food package from WFP, said he is very happy that in these difficult times, the international community has not forgotten Afghans.

"Poverty bothers me so much. All I worry about is finding food for my family but there are no sources of income through which I can make a living," he added.

"If it weren't for the assistance from aid agencies, [Afghans] could not overcome poverty and hunger."

"There are no work opportunities, and we cannot cultivate our lands because of the drought," he said.

While Afghanistan is grappling with an economic crisis, international assistance has saved the lives of millions of Afghans, Mohammad said.

Salvation from hunger

Khadija, 47, lost her brother and two sons, who were serving in the National Police, to wars in Zabul. She is the guardian of three families but suffers from severe poverty.

Her brother and two sons are survived by 18 family members, all of whom she now must support by herself.

"I am responsible for three families without any source of income."

"My orphaned grandchildren and nephews are young and can't work," she said. "My daughters-in-law and sister-in-law are afraid to work outside the house."

As a result, she is forced to "work in other [Afghans'] homes or beg on the streets", she said.

"Assistance by aid agencies saved us from hunger in the holy month of Ramadan. We have no hope except for such assistance. There is no one else to help us," Khadija added.

It is exhausting to fast on an empty stomach, she added, but the assistance has helped her not to worry about her family going hungry.

Shirin Gul, 42, who lost her husband three years ago in the war, supported her family of four by working in other Afghans' homes and doing their laundry.

She used to make 200 AFN ($2.32) a day, she said, but families do their own laundry now, so she has become jobless.

"Life has become very difficult from poverty and economic hardship. I worry ever morning about finding food for the night."

"I cry and feel bad every time I look at my hungry children," she said.

The food that she receives from UN agencies will help feed her family for about two months, Gul said.