KABUL: The Taliban official has claimed that 21 million people in Afghanistan lack access to clean drinking water due to climate change.
Deputy Head of the Taliban’s Environmental Department Abdul Salam Haqani said on Monday that the wars have caused Afghanistan to suffer serious harm from climate change, according to Afghan media reports.
Previously, the United Nations (UN) had said that climate change had reduced people’s access to water throughout the country.
The organization held a meeting in Herat in May 2023 that focused on climate impacts in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is one of the nations with the lowest readiness to cope with climate change-induced shocks.
Afghanistan Ranks 6th Most Climate-vulnerable Country
According to the latest assessments, it ranks 6th as the most climate-vulnerable country in the world.
UN findings indicate that rural communities in the country have faced countless environmental difficulties in recent years due to drought, landslides, and floods.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Higher Education and the National Environmental Protection Agency have said in a joint media conference that an international climate change conference will be organized next week at Nangarhar University.
Dr. Latifullah Khairkhwa, the Scientific Advisor to the Ministry of Higher Education, said Monday that Nangarhar University will host an international conference on climate change next week.
The gathering coincides with Afghanistan’s worst drought in thirty years, which is likely to have a severe impact on the country’s agriculture-based economy and food security.
Moreover, decades of war have left Afghan nationals highly vulnerable to climate change due to the destruction of socio-economic infrastructure.
