澳门六合彩

Three years ago this month, American forces swiftly pulled out of Afghanistan. Now more than a quarter of Afghans don鈥檛 know where their next meal is coming from.听

In the first quarter of 2021, approximately听 were facing 鈥渁cute food insecurity,鈥� a term used when an individual鈥檚 life or livelihood is in danger due to the inaccessibility of nutritious food. This actually reflected progress from the preceding years when the country was hit hard by both the COVID-19 pandemic and a series of droughts. The congressionally-chartered听Afghanistan Study Group (which I was a part of) documented how daily life for the Afghan people was improving in a number of ways. Life expectancy increased from 56 to 64 years. Maternal deaths were reduced by more than half. Child marriage declined by 17%, girls鈥� enrollment in primary school nearly doubled, and women were a growing presence in Afghanistan鈥檚 colleges, parliament, and diplomatic corps.听

However, it wasn鈥檛 long after the American withdrawal in August 2021 and subsequent Taliban takeover that the country鈥檚 economy went into a tailspin. Hunger rates quickly rose to record levels. Between September and October of 2021, nearly听 faced acute food insecurity and 6.8 million people experienced that at 鈥渆mergency听levels.鈥� By the spring of 2022 (March to May),听, or half of the country鈥檚 population, were considered by the United Nations to be in 鈥渁cute need鈥� of food.听

As the world marks the third anniversary of the American withdrawal, it鈥檚 clear that life in Afghanistan has improved little since the economic upheavals of 2021. There have been marginal improvements in food security, however听 Afghans still suffer from acute food shortages and 2.9 million are facing emergency levels of malnutrition and disease due to lack of sustenance. Approximately听 Afghans don鈥檛 know where they will find their next meal. More than 20 million Afghans will likely need humanitarian assistance this year鈥攎ore than half of them children.听

Like other of today鈥檚 protracted humanitarian crises, what鈥檚 happening in Afghanistan is human-made and regime-driven. It鈥檚 occurring because of how the Taliban rules. As I鈥檝e noted in听previous听Stubborn Things, the government in Kabul is especially brutal in its treatment of women and girls. The regime鈥檚 edicts have essentially torn women out of the fabric of daily life in the country, barring them from听 secondary school, from听, from听 without a close male relative, and even听. It has effectively prohibited Afghan women from serving in the government and banned them from working in humanitarian and development organizations like Save the Children, which was forced to听 in 2023, then later resume their work on only a limited basis.

But the Taliban鈥檚 actions are not only profoundly anti-woman, they are also anti-Afghanistan: they have significantly contributed to the country鈥檚 economic plight. By some estimates, forcing women out of the country鈥檚 formal economy has cost Afghanistan up to $ in gross domestic product. In the period before the Taliban takeover, more than听 of Afghanistan鈥檚 total workforce consisted of women, and听 of women-owned businesses were in food production and processing鈥nevitably making food insecurity and hunger much worse.

While the Taliban regime has been forceful in telling the world (especially Western countries) that its policies鈥攊ncluding its treatment of women鈥� are nobody鈥檚 business but its own, it鈥檚 still willing to appeal to the international community for humanitarian relief and assistance. And as is so often the case, the US has been the largest donor to the relief effort, providing approximately听 in humanitarian funding since 2021. As of the third anniversary of the American withdrawal, US contributions make up听 of the world鈥檚 overall humanitarian support to the country. It鈥檚 also worth remembering that the US is playing a major part in the assistance going to help Afghan refugees who have been driven to flee because of the Taliban鈥檚 brutal policies. In 2023,听 under the UN Refugee Agency鈥檚 mandate, or just over 6.4 million people, are from Afghanistan.听

When the last US military planes left Kabul airport at 11:59 pm on August 30, 2021, there were some in Washington who likely breathed a sigh of relief. They sincerely believed that America would finally be able to turn the page on an unpleasant chapter in our history. But that hasn鈥檛 proven to be true鈥攏ot by a longshot. In addition to the lingering memory of the tragic loss of 13 American lives during the withdrawal itself, the world is witnessing the terrible suffering of so many Afghan men, women, and girls. And because we are a humane and moral nation, we are still writing checks for billions in humanitarian relief and assistance.

Our troops may have left, but the costs continue.听

This blog was researched and drafted with assistance from Camilla Reitherman.听