Some 3.7 million children in Afghanistan are suffering from wasting, one of the most dangerous forms of malnutrition, with around one million currently battling the most severe, life-threatening form of the condition, according to a press release issued on 25 August 2026 by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). The agency reported that children under two account for 83 per cent of severe acute malnutrition cases. Malnutrition, driven by the lack of access to adequate food, compromises immune systems and makes children far more vulnerable to common infections. Hospitals across the country are overwhelmed by rising demand for treatment. The situation reflects a convergence of environmental shocks, regional instability, and mounting funding gaps.
Hospitals overwhelmed
In parts of southern Afghanistan, hospitals are seeing three to four severely malnourished children for every available bed. Severe acute malnutrition cases admitted with medical complications have risen by one-third compared with the same time last year. Admissions climbed from 6,000 in July 2025 to 8,000 by July 2026. UNICEF warned that facilities are struggling to keep pace with the growing caseload. The pressure on health services continues to intensify.
Overlapping crises
The spike in malnutrition cases is caused by a mix of environmental and political factors. Afghanistan has endured successive years of drought, followed by destructive heavy rainfall and flash floods, while this year’s record-strength El Niño climate pattern is expected to intensify the extreme weather. At the same time, regional instability is disrupting cross-border trade, and the return of more than six million people since 2023 is straining the job market and public services, including housing and health. UNICEF said families are unable to feed their children properly, with meals becoming smaller, scarcer, and less nutritiously varied. A child’s first food at six months old may consist of little more than bread with tea or watered-down yoghurt, the agency noted in a recent report.
Providing care
Treatment for malnutrition does exist, and UNICEF Representative in Afghanistan Tajudeen Oyewale shared the case of Sagida, a 9-month-old girl he met in a hospital in eastern Afghanistan. She came from a remote village in a neighbouring province that had recently suffered from severe floods, where a UNICEF-trained health worker found her with severe acute malnutrition and referred her to the hospital.
“When Sagida was first admitted, the doctors had little hope that she would survive. She weighed only 4 kg. But after receiving therapeutic milk, she has now stabilised,” Mr. Oyewale explained.
The account illustrates how early referral and therapeutic care can reverse the condition. Yet such services remain out of reach for many families in remote areas.
Cost-effective funding
Due to funding cuts to humanitarian aid, more than 100 sites treating children with severe wasting have closed this year compared with 2025, adding pressure on the centres that remain open. UNICEF’s nutrition programme has received only 22 per cent of the $180 million it requires this year.
“We should not wait until a child is dangerously thin and lying in a hospital bed before we intervene. […] Acting early does not only save lives. It is also far more cost-effective than waiting until a child is severely malnourished and needs life-saving treatment,” Mr. Oyewale said.
The agency emphasized the value of early action in protecting children’s lives. UNICEF’s warning underscores the scale of the challenge facing Afghanistan’s youngest population.