Children watch people at a camp for internally displaced people (IDP) where new apartment buildings are located in Kabul, Afghan on Monday. Photo: VCG

The United Nations and partners will continue delivering relief to Afghanistan, which faces hostilities and a second drought in four years, UN humanitarians said on Wednesday.

"In addition to drought, escalating conflict and a devastating new wave of COVID-19 have increased humanitarian needs and vulnerability," said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). 

"This year, almost half of the population of Afghanistan, 18.4 million people, is in humanitarian need."

Nearly a third of the country faces a crisis or emergency level of food insecurity, OCHA said. It is expected that almost half of all children under 5 face acute malnutrition.

The humanitarian office said $1.3 billion is required to help almost 16 million people through the year. But only 23 percent has been raised.

"The United Nations urges donors to urgently support the people of Afghanistan to enable humanitarians to continue responding to this complex crisis and to ensure that life-saving services are not interrupted," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Wednesday. "It is also critical that parties to the conflict allow humanitarians to have safe and unimpeded access to all people in need across the country."