Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), has said that the past five years have been a “desperate downward spiral” for the people of Afghanistan, adding that families in the country are facing a crisis that is worsening month by month.
The Norwegian Refugee Council said in a report published on Wednesday, September 9, that people in Afghanistan are facing a crisis driven by displacement, conflict, climate shocks, and gender discrimination.
According to the report, Egeland said that the country has been “completely abandoned,” with terrible consequences for women and girls.
Speaking about his visit to Afghanistan, he said, “Infant malnutrition is soaring, and communities are at rock bottom, with nowhere to turn.”
Egeland said he had met families who had been forced to live in the most basic shelters, sometimes without a roof over their heads.
The NRC chief said that families returning to Afghanistan are now trapped in horrific conditions.
This comes as poverty has continued to spread in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s return to power, while women have been barred from education and employment, and the forced return of hundreds of thousands of migrants has added to the country’s existing challenges.
