The United Kingdom has decreased its humanitarian aid to Afghanistan from £246 million to £100 this year, according to the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI), the independent body responsible for scrutiny of UK aid.
By cutting humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, British aid agencies are faced with delays in launching polio vaccination campaigns and demining programs in Afghanistan.
The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) in its latest report released on Thursday, May 18, has highlighted that the UK may not play a vital role to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan by drastically reducing its humanitarian aid to the war-ravaged country.
In 2022, the UK donated some 246 million British pounds as part of its humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, however, this year, the number has declined to 100 million pounds.
“Since the return of Taliban to power, Britain has played an important role in delivering aid to Afghanistan. However, with the drastic decline of the UK’s cash aid to the country, it will have negative impacts on the implementation of certain programs which benefit the people of Afghanistan,” Sir Hugh Bayley head of ICAI said.
Besides reconsidering its cash aid, he has called on the UK government to reopen its Diplomatic Mission in Kabul so that it could directly observe the distribution of its aid to Afghanistan.
Furthermore, it is also stated that currently, the UK has nearly 80 diplomatic staff in Pakistan and Qatar who are working to implement its programs in Afghanistan.
