Afghanistan’s climate chaos

A recent Taliban decree bans women from praying aloud in the presence of one another, prohibiting them from hearing each other’s voices. Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban have implemented numerous such decrees, raising serious concerns about the basic rights of the Afghan population. Unfortunately, international organizations and countries have largely failed to take meaningful action to support those living under Taliban rule.

But at least much of the rest of the world is aware of those human rights issues. That is not the case with the climate crisis facing Afghanistan. There has been little foreign media coverage of the fact that, despite contributing only 0.3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, this landlocked country of around 42 million people faces increasing environmental disasters that make it one of the world’s lands that are most vulnerable to climate change.

Erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, unseasonal frosts and flash floods are now common. At present, Afghanistan is ranked sixth in global climate vulnerability and fourth in disaster risk, with the International Rescue Committee identifying it as the third most affected country by climate change in 2023.

Since 1950, temperatures in Afghanistan have increased by 1.8°C, more than twice the global average, which has led to changes in average rainfall patterns and an increase in floods, landslides, and fluctuating groundwater levels. The lack of infrastructure to manage annual floods is estimated to result in economic losses of around $400 million, impacting approximately 335,000 people.

Simultaneously, Afghanistan is grappling with frequent droughts; as of August 2023, 25 out of 34 provinces were experiencing severe or catastrophic