Response to the Afghan Crisis

Afghan refugees and conflict victims have been receiving assistance from the United States since millions fled Afghanistan in 1978. Afghanistan has been experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis with 3 years of drought overlaid on 20 years of conflict. With the fall of the Taliban and the creation of an interim administration to guide the country toward a permanent broad-based government, Afghanistan's future is looking brighter. However, much remains to be accomplished. In the short term, extraordinary efforts are still necessary to respond to the urgent humanitarian needs of the Afghan people.

In response to the crisis, the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) has provided resources to support refugees, internally displaced persons, and other vulnerable persons. The Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration has contributed a total of $94.1 million* since the beginning of the current Afghan emergency.

Primary partners for PRM's funding are the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies (IFRC), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and other UN agencies. The Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration also provides funding to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to fill critical protection and assistance gaps in Afghanistan and surrounding countries.

PRM's funding in Afghanistan supports critical activities in the sectors of water and sanitation, primary, reproductive, maternal and child healthcare, shelter, food and nutrition, primary education, mine education and awareness, economic assistance, capacity building, as well as programs that support the voluntary return and reintegration of refugees and IDPs to their homes in Afghanistan.

Agency	Amount	Purpose
TOTAL PRM CONTRIBUTIONS	$ 94.1 million*	Contingency Planning, Emergency Assistance, Return and Reintegration Assistance
UNHCR TOTAL	$54.0 million	Emergency Response to Afghan Refugees and IDPs; Support for Voluntary Repatriation and Reintegration for Returning Refugees
ICRC TOTAL	$13.5 million	Emergency Response for Conflict Victims in Afghanistan and neighboring countries
IFRC TOTAL	$5.0 million	Emergency Assistance to Afghans in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, and Iran
IOM TOTAL	$3.0 million	Emergency Assistance, Logistics, Assistance to IDPs and Returning Refugees in Afghanistan
OCHA TOTAL	$3.6 million	Inter-Agency Coordination in Pakistan and Afghanistan
UNDP TOTAL	$0.66 million	Support for the Project Management Information System in Afghanistan (ProMIS) and the Afghanistan Information Management System (AIMS)
UNFPA TOTAL	$0.6 million	Safe Motherhood Program for Afghan Refugees in Pakistan
UNICEF TOTAL	$6.0 million	Emergency Health, Education, Water/Sanitation Assistance to Afghan Refugees and IDPs; Support for UNICEF’s Back-to-School Program for Returning Afghan Refugees
WFP TOTAL	$5.5 million	Logistics, Food Mgmt & Supply in Afghanistan and Pakistan
WHO TOTAL	$1.0 million	Support for the Provision of Basic Health Services for Returning Refugees
International Rescue Committee (IRC)	$0.2 million	Support to Maintain Operational Capacity Inside Afghanistan (October-December 2001)
Mercy Corps (MCI)	$0.16 million	Support to Maintain Operational Capacity Inside Afghanistan (October-December 2001)
MCI	$0.37 million	Program to Support Health Services and Capacity-Building for Vulnerable Afghan Refugees in Quetta, Pakistan (January-August 2002)
International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC)	$0.52 million	Program to Identify and Coordinate Social Service Delivery to Vulnerable Urban Afghans in Peshawar and Quetta, Pakistan (January-December 2002)

*These contributions include funding obligated to international organizations and nongovernmental organizations since the beginning of the current Afghan emergency, as well as contributions totaling over $20 million to UNHCR and other UN partners, which were announced on April 2.

Released April 12, 2002