Taliban's 'atrocious' regime root cause of food scarcity

Since the takeover, the Taliban's hard regime has waged war and constant unrest in the country with the newest one emerging in the form of wheat shortfall as the country now gears up to tackle the looming food crunch.

Due to the gripping crisis, the Taliban, in its latest order, authorized all customs offices on Thursday, May 19, to prevent wheat export or trade due to extreme food scarcity, Khaama Press reported.

This measure has been taken into consideration to avoid amplification of scarcity, Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan stated on his Twitter handle.

While the price for wheat has increased by 50% in different parts of Kandahar province, it is claimed that some people have begun smuggling wheat to Pakistan, the report added.

Furthermore, as a result of recent political developments, the Afghan people are experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis. In addition to that, food prices, particularly wheat, have risen substantially since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

According to the UN, hunger and food shortages affect up to 97% of the Afghan population. Previously, World Food Programme (WFP) reported that since the fall of the former government to the Taliban, over 22 million people face severe hunger.

Absolute poverty, food crisis, and unemployment are being witnessed at an all-time high as families in Kabul are forced to move to the streets due to political unrest in the country since the Taliban took control.

According to Khaama Press, Afghanistan is estimated to require more than six million tonnes of wheat each year to feed its 33 million population as Wheat is the country's principal source of nutrition.

Meanwhile, India has pledged to provide 50,000 tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan as humanitarian aid in addition to medications as another consignment of the cereal from the government of India was dispatched to Afghanistan via the Attari Wagah Border on Monday.

As per a local survey, the rate of poverty in Afghanistan has exceeded 95 percent since the fall of the former government while 56 percent are seeking to leave the country amid a drop in daily income. Moreover, millions of Afghans are on the brink of starvation as the country reels from a humanitarian crisis.