The plight of Afghan refugee children
Afghan refugee children suffer from hunger, malnutrition and disease. Many of those who escaped with their parents from the Taliban have ended up in the slums of Kabul.
Poverty
For decades, Afghanistan has been one of the poorest countries in the world. About 36 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, according to the Afghan Ministry of Public Health. Existential fears evoked by the ongoing conflict have prompted people to leave their homes. As a result, many families end up going hungry and their children becoming ill.
Hunger
Many children show deficiency symptoms and suffer from diet-related diseases. According to the United Nations, the number of acutely malnourished children in Afghanistan has risen steadily since 2012. The bitterly cold winter is worsening their situation.
Escape
Children from internally displaced families are particularly hard-hit. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than half a million people are on the run from the Taliban, especially as the extremists have regained control in parts of southern Afghanistan. Many children end up living in the slums of the capital city, Kabul.
Hardship
This boy from a refugee camp near Kabul has to settle for the shoes of an adult. Only few children have fitting clothes and many have to get through without shoes despite freezing temperatures. The city lacks the financial means to look after the refugees, who currently depend on donations from abroad. These contributions, however, are often not enough.
Scarcity
There is neither electricity nor running water in the slums where the refugees reside. They lack almost everything. Children have few chances of developing, as most parents are jobless and can't afford to send their children to school.
Food?
Some children scavenge landfills for food they can either eat or sell. Many of them are forced to take up employment in order to support their families. Boys and girls often work as hawkers or on construction sites.
Despair
The families of those internally displaced are desperate. While the situation in their home provinces remains volatile, there is barely any room left and nothing to eat for them in Kabul. Nonetheless, the number of uprooted people has grown continuously over the past years.
Hope
The United Nations estimates that the number of internally displaced refugees will further increase after NATO withdraws its combat troops by the end of the year. More than a decade after the US-led invasion and billions of dollars in financial aid, there is only little chance of these children growing in a safe environment with access to health care and a proper education.