LONDON, 29 January 2022, (TON): Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has pledged £97 million of emergency UK aid to the Afghan people to provide life-saving food and emergency health support, as well as water and sanitation facilities.

This latest allocation of vital support means the UK has now delivered on its promise to double UK aid to Afghanistan, with £286 million committed this financial year.

UK aid allocated since October will support over 60 hospitals, provide health services for over 300,000 people; ensure 4.47 million people get emergency food assistance through the World Food Programme; and provide 6.1 million people with emergency health, water, protection, shelter, food, and education support through the UN Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund.

The Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Nigel Casey and government officials joined a meeting of US and European Special Representatives for Afghanistan in Oslo earlier this week to discuss economic and humanitarian issues, security and counter-terrorism, and human rights.

UK officials made clear to the Taliban delegation our serious concerns about human rights in particular the rights of women and girls and reports of reprisals against former members of the Afghan security forces.