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Vulnerable families in Kabul receive winter aid

Vulnerable families in Kabul receive winter aid

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15 Dec 2013 - 14:02
Vulnerable families in Kabul receive winter aid
author avatar
15 Dec 2013 - 14:02

KABUL): The Afghan government and the United Nations on Sunday began distributing aid to over 1,200 vulnerable families as part of a countrywide drive to help 26,000 households survive harsh winter conditions.

The aid from the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation, UNHCR and WFP includes blankets, charcoal, plastic sheet, jerry cans, kitchen sets and other winter supplies, as well as food rations.

A statement from UNHCR said the beneficiaries were a mix of vulnerable recently returned refugees and internally displaced people, as well as others at particular risk in the cold winter weather.

Provincial Disaster Management Committees (PDMC) and humanitarian actors, including UNHCR, are working with the government and communities to improve distribution not only in the provincial centers, but also in districts and villages.

Launched in November, the UNHCR winter assistance campaign is distributing 5,500 winter packs in the east and southeast; 5,000 in the north and northeast; 4,300 in the west; 4,000 in the south and 7,200 in the central and central highlands regions.

Coordinated by the National Disaster Management Authority, Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation and implemented through local authorities and non-government partners, the World Food Programme supplements UNHCR’s distribution with food packages.

Hai Kyung Jun, acting UNHCR representative in Afghanistan, said: “As always, the different agencies work closely together on this winterisation programme under the joint leadership of the government of Afghanistan and OCHA.”

She added: “But we are all hoping that the newly endorsed National Policy on Internally Displaced Persons will lead to renewed efforts to find real solutions to these displaced people who suffer all year round, especially during the cold winter months.”

Speaking at the Kabul Women’s Garden, Minister of Refugees Jamaher Anwary said: “These people here today need our help to survive the next few months.  But we have not forgotten hundreds of returning refugees and internally displaced people who are also living in atrocious conditions…”

As of December, a total of 624,500 people are displaced because of conflict. Among them, more than 117,600 individuals were recorded as newly displaced in 2013, largely in the southern and western regions of the country.

pr/mud

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