The South Korean government has contributed $2 million in humanitarian assistance to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Afghanistan for projects spanning 12 months and 30,000 people across four provinces, the organisation said on Tuesday.
“In Afghanistan, 56% of all people in need of humanitarian assistance in 2020 are children,” said Zha Hyoung Rhee, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Afghanistan.
“We have a duty to ensure they can access quality basic, integrated services and that we build their resilience in the midst of recurring conflict and natural disasters in the country.”
UNICEF’s Health, Nutrition, Education, Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) and Child Protection, through two separate projects, will be implemented in Daykundi, Herat, Balkh and Nangarhar provinces.
“The intervention will last for 12 months and will reach more than 30,000 girls, boys, women, and men, providing them with increased access to basic services,” the organisation said.
UNICEF will be able to support up to 19,000 persons in hard-to-reach communities in Daykundi through an integrated package of multi-sectoral humanitarian assistance.
This funding will also provide urgent humanitarian assistance to offset the impact of conflict, winter and drought
“Thanks to its multi-sectoral expertise, UNICEF has a strong advantage in supporting the Government and partners to deliver integrated services to the population, and has been doing so for years,” says Aboubacar Kampo, UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan.
“By delivering several different services in the same community, the intervention will have a multiplier effect and add more value compared to a single-sector response”.
The contribution will also be channelled to protecting 5,500 children in Herat, Balkh and Nangarhar provinces against violence, abuse and exploitation.
The children will be supported to re-integrate in their communities after being released from armed groups and armed forces, as well as receiving information on how to avoid the risk of land mines.
The project will also support tailored responses to gender-based violence, and promote awareness of child protection issues among the communities.
While strengthening the capacity of government and partners to undertake emergency interventions, the initiatives will also contribute to longer-term development outcomes in Afghanistan.
The activities will also build capacity of government institutions over time, as well as enhance community participation to develop collective accountability towards social behaviour change.
