Why China should step up aid to Afghanistan

Flooding has also been reported in Badakhshan, Ghor and Herat provinces. The main road between Kabul to northern Afghanistan is reportedly closed, impeding relief efforts.

Arshad Malik, Afghanistan director of the humanitarian non-governmental organisation Save the Children, has said that “lives and livelihoods have been washed away” and “children have lost everything”. According to the NGO, 40,000 children are now homeless. The number of dead and displaced is expected to rise over the coming days before floodwaters ease.

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At least 315 killed in deadly flash floods in northern Afghanistan

The Taliban has come under fire for its response to the floods, accused of being slow to act by affected communities. Many villages have been left to undertake their own rescue efforts to save those trapped by floods. For its part, the Taliban has told the media that it was delivering food and medicine to flood-hit areas and “searching for any possible victims under the mud and rubble”.

The reality is international aid agencies have picked up the Taliban’s slack. The World Food Programme, Médecins Sans Frontières and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have all been providing life-saving aid. This is a common theme in Afghanistan, with the country perpetually reliant on aid for disaster response and to simply keep the country running. This was all but confirmed by the Taliban’s economic minister, who asked the United Nations to intervene.

Afghanistan clearly needs help. The Taliban needs to look to the international community to solve the problems the country faces, especially when it comes to natural disasters.

But while China has been keen to invest in Afghanistan for economic and political gain, it has