Number of Afghans slipping into poverty nearly doubles to 34 million, says UN

The United Nations has said that the number of Afghans in poverty nearly doubled to 34 million as the nation was racked by the collapse of the US-backed government and the Taliban takeover.

The United Nations Development Programme UNDP yesterday released a stark new assessment of 2022 data estimating 34 million Afghans were living below the poverty line.

It said, vast foreign subsidies were halted and aid programmes dramatically cut back after the US-backed republic fell in 2021 as many countries refused to deal with the Taliban authorities in Kabul.