UN says Afghanistan floods worsen shelter crisis for 4.2 million people

Recent floods in Afghanistan have worsened an already severe shelter crisis, with 4.2 million people now needing emergency housing support, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) said on Wednesday.

The agency urged immediate action, saying safe housing is a basic human need as repeated climate-related disasters continue to destroy fragile homes and deepen humanitarian vulnerability across the country.

In a message marking the scale of the crisis, UN-Habitat said “every family deserves a safe place to live,” highlighting the urgent pressure on communities already affected by poverty, displacement and weak infrastructure.

Taliban authorities said more than 958 homes were completely destroyed and 4,155 others partially damaged in the latest wave of floods and heavy rains across several provinces.

Much of Afghanistan has been hit by severe rainfall and flash flooding over the past two weeks, with aid groups warning that shelter losses are compounding wider risks linked to displacement, disease and lack of services.

Afghanistan already faces one of the region’s most acute housing emergencies, with millions of returnees, displaced families and urban poor living in fragile or informal shelters highly exposed to floods and other climate shocks.

UN-Habitat says decades of conflict, underinvestment, rapid urbanisation and worsening climate impacts have left large parts of the country dangerously unprepared for recurring disasters such as floods, drought and earthquakes.

The latest floods have once again exposed Afghanistan’s housing vulnerability, with aid agencies warning that without rapid support, thousands more families could be left without safe shelter.

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