Afghanistan 2016 Humanitarian Response Plan: Mid-Year Review (January - June 2016)

Through the first six months of 2016 humanitarian response efforts have been dominated by emergency relief to people affected by conflict. The conflict intensified between January and June, with notable increases in civilian casualties (4%), displacements (17%) and security related incidents (8%) as compared to the same period last year. Military operations and NSAG assaults (most notable in Hilmand, Kunduz and Uruzgan) have occurred throughout the country resulting in 25 of 34 provinces registering displacements. Between January and June almost 169,000[1] individuals (24,926 families) were reported to have been displaced – roughly 25,000 more than the same period in 2015, with new and unprecedented spikes in fighting in areas such as Baghlan Province. Trends from previous years show increased displacement during the second half of each year. Should this be the case in 2016, displacement figures will surpass the HRP estimate of 250,000.[2]

In terms of assessing progress against the 2016 HRP planned results, most clusters are on track; indicator progress monitoring, however, generally relates to achievements against reaching a target number of beneficiaries as set at the start of the year and does not fully take into account figures greater than were anticipated. Clusters therefore took the midyear opportunity to review progress against the change in context, and consider any need to modify both targets and financial requirements accordingly. Revisions can be seen in the needs for food security and agriculture, nutrition, protection, and refugee and returns.

The humanitarian response plan for 2016 has received a total of $207 million to date as reported in-country by partners, representing 61% of the revised financial requirement of $345 million (reduced from $393 million). Midyear revisions detailed below have resulted in an approximately $54 million reduction in the overall ask principally as a result of changes to the Food Security and Agriculture (- $11 million) and the Refugee and Returnee Plans (- $47 million) and slight increases from Nutrition (+ $5.5 million) and Protection (+ $7.3 million) clusters. The reductions only in part reflect reduced needs such as for refugees and returnees; principally the reductions reflect funding constraints impacting ability to implement planned programmes in the first half of the year and realistic absorption capacity and capability to deliver in the coming six months.

[1] This figure is as of 30 June 2016. Since then, the figure has risen to 182,680 people.
[2] An all-time high of 384,000 people were displaced in 2015.