This winter, as temperatures plummet and conditions worsen across Afghanistan, families across remote and rural regions brace themselves for the difficult months ahead.

Since 2021, Afghans have been facing an unprecedented and protracted humanitarian crisis. While support from organisations like ours has helped millions of men, women, and children recover and rebuild their lives, levels of need remain staggering. Over 23 million people still require humanitarian assistance, requirements that only intensify during the harsh winter months. Across winter, remote villages become isolated, cut off from markets, hospitals, and schools. Food supplies become scarce, opportunities for seasonal work diminish, and families living in poverty struggle to afford the essentials their children need to endure the freezing temperatures.

Amid these challenges, winterisation assistance offers an essential lifeline to remote families, with our teams delivering blankets, heating supplies, and other basic necessities to communities experiencing these challenges through the colder months, and whilst they prepare to recover and rebuild come spring.

Some of the recent families our teams have supported hail from Ghor, one of Afghanistan’s most impoverished and food insecure provinces. We caught up with some of those who received this crucial support, to learn more about how this enabled them to keep warm, afford food and make ends meet.

Sana’s Story

Sana's remote village in Ghor

Sana* lives with her five children in a remote area of Ghor. After her husband died, Sana became the sole provider for her three daughters and two sons, having to navigate the social limitations that come with being a widow in Afghanistan. And with already limited opportunities for women to earn an income, as well as deepening restrictions on their lives, Sana was struggling to make ends meet:

“As a woman I cannot move or migrate to find a better life. But I am the only one who has the responsibility to work and earn money for my children, so most of the time I am sewing clothes for my neighbours, washing their clothes and bringing firewood for them from the nearest hill. In order to earn something for my family.”

“As winter approached I was worried about how we would manage it without any heating or blankets. All the time I just wondered whether this severe winter will kill all of us.”

When Sana heard of an upcoming Afghanaid programme coming to her local area, she immediately notified the team as being in need of support. 

“I immediately enrolled as a project participant,” Sana recalled.

I received 29,180 Afghanis and was able get winterisation appliances like heating, wood, warm clothes and blankets for my children. I am very delighted and thankful to Afghanaid and its team, who supported me in such difficult conditions.

Tariq’s story

Tariq*, another resident of Ghor province, explained why people in their area are particularly vulnerable during the winter months: “Over the last few years many changes occurred in our country Afghanistan, so these changes affected the life of the people, especially in our province, Ghor, and the people living in this rural area that lies in the most remote part of the province. There is no work - no industries to work in, and no other source of income without cultivation. Agriculture is the only source of income, however, this means that we are more vulnerable to drought-induced famine. As much as we have tried hard, we could not overcome the issues to earn enough and meet our needs.”

Tariq, who is the sole provider for him and his wife’s family of five sons and four daughters, explained the impact of a lack of livelihood opportunities on his ability to make ends meet.

Before coming into contact with Afghanaid, my family’s situation was getting desperate. We were really living in a difficult situation without enough money to fulfil the requirements of my family. During the winter the children do not have warm clothes to wear, no heating facilities and not enough blankets.

Tariq also received a payment of 29,180 Afs (around £340) to support him to purchase items for the winter, including a heater, fuel, warm clothes and blankets. By supporting Sana and Tariq with winter cash assistance, both parents had the flexibility to purchase the necessities that best met their families needs, whilst also retaining autonomy over family decisions.

“Afghanaid is trying to fight against poverty and tries to fulfil the requirements of people like me.” Tariq said, “I am very glad and thankful to Afghanaid.”

How can you help?

• 15.8 million Afghans are currently facing acute food insecurity. Afghanaid improves local food security by distributing emergency food packages to rural families, as well as seeds and fertilisers for farmers to plant and get back on their feet in the spring.
• In the last year, natural disasters and a deportation crisis has forced many families to leave their homes: 6.3 million Afghans are currently internally displaced. Our winter aid provides shelter, blankets, heaters, fuel and winter clothes to families who are displaced.
• The ongoing economic crisis has left many in acute debt and made it difficult for families to afford basic necessities. Afghanaid delivers cash to families, enabling them to autonomously tackle their most pressing and varied needs.

No matter the size of the contribution, your support can have a transformative impact on the health and well-being of the Afghan men, women and children most at risk in this ongoing humanitarian crisis.

*Names have been changed.

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