Australian officials and UN Women have recently warned that the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan has reached “the worst level in the world,” stressing that continued humanitarian assistance is vital to prevent further deterioration.
Christine Arab, UN Women’s Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, told Australian media that the de facto authorities, through a series of successive decrees, have effectively removed women and girls from public life.
She emphasized that these restrictions include denial of education, limitations on access to public spaces, barriers to higher education, and restrictions on essential services.
Meanwhile, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced in January that Australia would allocate an additional 50 million dollars in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.
With this new contribution, Australia’s total assistance since 2021 has reached 310 million dollars.
According to United Nations figures, nearly 22 million people in Afghanistan are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.
Australia’s aid is mainly focused on supporting women and girls, health services, food security, and the protection of human dignity and rights.
Christine Arab further added that any humanitarian assistance must explicitly prioritize support for women and girls, noting that the multilateral system and the international community’s commitment to human rights are more important now than ever under the current circumstances.
These remarks come as international organizations have repeatedly warned of the worsening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
