UNHCR is staying in Afghanistan. And we need your help

I have followed it through my work as an Australian diplomat and now for the UN Refugee Agency for many years, including travelling throughout the country in 2002 interviewing some of the 2 million returning refugees at that time.

As the current crisis continues to unfold, my deep concern for the safety and welfare of Afghans has been shared by thousands of Australians. It is clear we are dealing with a major humanitarian emergency.

Two weeks since launching Australia for UNHCR's Afghanistan Emergency Appeal, we are on track to raise $6 million from individual Australians and the private sector. This has been boosted by three extraordinary matching gifts to the fundraising campaign of celebrated artist Ben Quilty for the UNHCR Appeal. People have shown an inspiring generosity and compassion at a time when many of us are managing our own challenges with lockdown and Covid-related hardship.

With more than 3.5 million people displaced within Afghanistan, 80 percent of whom are women and children, the scale of the emergency is huge. With only 43 percent of needs on the ground funded, we urgently need to raise more money.

The immediate focus of both the Australian government and media has been on the heartbreaking situation of Afghans with Australian connections. But the reality is the vast majority of Afghans will stay in their country, including those who have fled their homes in recent days.

UNHCR, together with other UN and non-government partners who make up the Inter-Agency Standing Committee on Afghanistan, issued an extraordinary statement on August 19 calling for solidarity with the Afghan people and expressing their commitment to stay and deliver.

The shocking terrorist attack on Kabul airport on Thursday has not changed this commitment.

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Staying in Afghanistan is vital for not only the immediate protection and assistance of local people, but also to secure the progress that has been made over the past two decades. Important gains made in recent years - including on gender equality and girls' access to a quality education - must be preserved. And much more needs to be done to realise the rights of women and girls. We must continue to support the people of Afghanistan if those gains are not to be reversed.

UNHCR, together with other partners, reached almost 8 million people in the first half of 2021 with aid. Given the challenges, this is huge achievement. Timely funding saves lives, protects livelihoods, eases suffering and prevents further displacement.

Right now, cash assistance, shelter kits, food, water, hygiene support and other essential relief are critical lifelines to Afghans with no other means of support. Protection for women and girls against sexual and gender-based violence is a high priority.

UNHCR has many years' experience working in this difficult environment, and has received a commitment from the Taliban that it will be able to continue delivering its humanitarian programs such as education, livelihoods, vocational training and sanitation and health programs.

Today national and international UNHCR staff remain on the ground. We have operations across two-thirds of the country, and we are working with 18 local non-government organisations. We are committed to staying and delivering aid to the Afghan people as long as access to populations and safety to staff is possible.

The private sector in Australia has a key role to play in helping UNHCR stay and deliver. I am proud of my fellow Australians who have already responded so generously to my calls for support, and I hope that many more will step up at this pivotal time for Afghan people.