Afghanistan will remain one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises in 2026, despite a modest reduction in the overall number of people in need. Years of conflict, economic fragility, underinvestment in basic services and the rapid erosion of rights have left large segments of the population with diminished resilience.
These chronic stresses are now compounded by worsening food insecurity, large-scale cross-border returns, climate change-driven drought, recurrent natural hazards, and the systematic exclusion of women and girls from public life. In 2026, around 21.9 million people – approximately 45 per cent of the population – are projected to require humanitarian assistance, reflecting the combined impact of overlapping shocks and deep structural vulnerability.
Source: OCHA, 2026.
Alliance2015 response to the earthquake
On October 7th 2023, Afghanistan suffered an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8. In the very next weeks, three others occurred in the Herat region. Following these events, 2,000 persons were reported dead. It is estimated 270,000 were impacted, in need of shelter, safe water, food, and other items. The earthquake also came aggravating the living conditions of an already vulnerable population, experiencing a serious crisis linked to climate change, conflict, and economic difficulties.
Read more about our response here.
