New Zealand has allocated an additional $3 million to provide humanitarian assistance to crisis-hit Afghanistan, the government said on Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th September, 2021) New Zealand has allocated an additional $3 million to provide humanitarian assistance to crisis-hit Afghanistan, the government said on Monday.
"New Zealand is providing a further $3 million in humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan," the government said in a statement, citing Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta.
The worsening humanitarian crisis in the Central Asian nation disproportionately affects women and girls, the statement read, noting that� 80% of those displaced in Afghanistan since May are women and children, according to the UN estimates.
"With the dangers that women and girls are facing in Afghanistan today, it is more important than ever to support the organisations that are delivering much needed humanitarian assistance and protection," Mahuta was quoted as saying.
The new financial pledge came after New Zealand provided $3 million in late August to the Red Cross and the UN Refugee Agency addressing the situation in Afghanistan.
Later on Monday, Geneva will host a UN meeting on Afghanistan at the level of permanent representatives to address growing humanitarian needs in the Central Asian nation. The conference will advocate for a swift "scale-up in funding so the lifesaving humanitarian operation can continue," as well as call for "full and unimpeded humanitarian access."
