UN urges support for Afghan women’s aid five years into Taliban rule

More than half of women’s organisations still operating in Afghanistan could cease operations within the next year, UN-women" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="49012" data-entity-type="organization">UN Women warns.Published On 15 Aug 2026Five years since the Taliban came to power, the United Nations has warned that funding issues mean more than half of women’s organisations still operating in Afghanistan could cease operations within the next year.Susan Ferguson, UN-women" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="49012" data-entity-type="organization">UN Women’s special representative in Afghanistan, appealed to donor countries on Friday not to cut funding for women’s programmes, saying to do so would only deepen the suffering of Afghan women.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Deadliest form of malnutrition has reached critical levels in Afghanistanlist 2 of 3UNESCO says 2.4 million Afghan girls denied access to further educationlist 3 of 3Nearly 4 million Afghan children ‘acutely malnourished’end of listMore than half of 74 women’s organisations surveyed in April are likely to have to suspend operations or close in the next year due to funding problems, Ferguson said.The UN’s $1.7bn humanitarian appeal for Afghanistan was only 25 percent funded, and nearly three-quarters of the women’s organisations had experienced funding cuts in 2025, while about two-thirds reported that they had six months or less of operational funding remaining, she added.The UN’s call comes as the Taliban marks five years since US forces withdrew from the country, effectively handing back power to the group in August 2021, after 20 years of war.Bright white flags of the Afghanistan" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="139030" data-entity-type="organization">Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan have been installed this week across the Afghan capital Kabul, with new murals declaring: “Independence is a sign of dignity, pride and identity”.The Taliban is also hosting a cricket match as part of the celebrations – but, just like much of public life in Afghanistan, women and girls are barred from attending.An Afghan boy buys a Taliban flag from a roadside vendor in Afghanistan’s Ghazni province on August 14, 2026, ahead of the fifth anniversary of the Taliban government’s return to power [Mohammad Faisal Naweed/AFP]Crippling restrictions for Afghan womenThe Taliban has imposed more than 100 decrees restricting women’s rights since returning to power, affecting nearly every aspect of their daily lives, from education and employment to freedom of movement, healthcare and access to justice, Ferguson said.