00:00Since this devastating earthquake hit Eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, it specifically affected
00:09the provinces of Kunar, Laguman and Nangahar. Especially Kunar has been very deeply affected
00:16and this province is one of the most rugged and mountainous parts of the country, which means
00:21that there are steep mountains, valleys, and it makes us very, very hard for aid workers to reach
00:27the communities. But Roz, let's put this in perspective. This is happening in Afghanistan,
00:33where half of the country, and I'm talking of 23 million people, are already in need of
00:38humanitarian assistance. So we have been hearing that, seeing in a matter of minutes, hundreds,
00:45thousands of people lost everything they had, not only their belongings, but also their loved ones
00:51and sense of safety. So it's a hugely urgent crisis and Afghans are bearing the brunt of this.
00:57over an already dire situation.
01:01So what are the main challenges then, Deepmala, facing aid agencies like yours? You've already
01:06mentioned the mountainous terrain. There are also reports of landslides.
01:13So absolutely, one of the biggest challenges for us is humanitarian access, how to reach the
01:19communities, though the UN humanitarian aviation flights have been opened up for Jalalabad,
01:24so that gives an outlet. The other big challenge for us is the resources, because Afghanistan's
01:31humanitarian response has been underfunded. So if the donors do not step up, we will not be able to
01:37scale our humanitarian response. And the third big challenge, I would say, is the terrain, which really
01:44makes it very, very difficult to reach the affected people. But I do want to highlight, there are strong,
01:49trusted and experienced organizations, international, as well as local Afghan organizations who are already
01:56in action. What we need right now is quick and urgent support to step up the response.
02:03What are the immediate priorities then for people on the ground? What's needed the most?
02:09Communities immediately need shelter, food, water, blankets, warm clothes, cooking pots and pans,
02:17and specifically medical care and medicines because of the injured. These are the urgent,
02:23immediate needs that we are hearing from the communities.
02:25Okay. How hard is it for you to contact your workers there? What are communications like?
02:30It's a bit patchy, but it is possible to get information. But communication is manageable
02:37and possible. We cannot do it minute by minute. But we are in touch.
02:43And what's the attitude, Deem Mala, of the ruling Taliban towards the disaster? What impact
02:48is its regime having on the disaster response?
02:52See, for humanitarian organizations like Care and others, we have a singular mandate,
02:57one focused priority, which is saving lives and reaching the most vulnerable people. And we would
03:04coordinate with the de facto authorities as necessary. So far, we have not faced any blockages and we
03:09have been able to initiate our immediate needs assessment and humanitarian response. So with the years and
03:16years of experience of working in the country, having trusted local partners, having strong relationships
03:22relationships with communities, community elders, we are able to deliver and coordinating as it is needed.
03:28And there's been a sharp drop in international aid to Afghanistan since the Taliban took over and also
03:34more recently from the U.S. undercuts to U.S. aid. So how fragile has this left the country?
03:41Extremely fragile, extremely fragile. The foreign aid cuts have really affected the communities, the people,
03:50even ongoing humanitarian and development work would have been scaled down or organizations have had to shut it
03:58down completely. So this definitely has increased the fragility of the community, especially for women
04:03and girls, because they have been bearing the brunt of this crisis for several decades. So pulling off
04:10support from highly vulnerable communities which have been facing disaster after disaster. Even two years
04:17ago, we had an earthquake in Herat. There have been so many disasters. So definitely taking away humanitarian
04:23aid is one step which we do not want at this moment. And it has left communities, especially women and girls,
04:30highly, highly, highly vulnerable. And I do want to highlight Ross that a step of support at the right time,
04:37if it is not given, the recovery takes much longer and it may actually get more expensive to save and build lives.
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