UN News Today 16 December 2025 |

Afghanistan mothers turned away at health centres amid dire funding cuts

The dire funding situation facing aid workers globally continues to have a devastating impact on vulnerable communities.

In Afghanistan today, it means that children are not getting the help they need – and used to get – to stave off worsening hunger.

In an update on Tuesday, the UN World Food Programme, WFP, warned that more than 17 million Afghans are at risk as winter sets in.

This is over two million more than last year, according to the global authority on hunger, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification platform, or IPC.

Jean-Martin Bauer from WFP explained the impact of unprecedented reductions in funding for essential services:

“What my colleagues in Afghanistan tell me is that mothers, especially are turning up at health centres with children hoping for some support for them. Unfortunately, in many cases being turned away because resources are no longer available.”

DR Congo violence pushes 500,000 from their homes: UNHCR

To the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where UN agencies say that more than half a million people have fled their homes in just the last few days, in eastern areas overrun by M23 fighters.

“No one should have to choose between safety and survival,” WFP said in an online post on Tuesday, as South Kivu Province witnesses its most significant escalation of hostilities since the beginning of the year.

To help, the agency urgently needs $350 million to deliver life-saving food to communities impacted by decades of insecurity in the vast, resource-rich region.

In neighbouring Burundi, meanwhile, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, reported that around 64,000 refugees have arrived, and more are on their way.

Needs include medical assistance and shelter, the agency said. It also issued a warning about unaccompanied or separated children and the “high percentage” of women at risk among the newly displaced.

WHO backs flu jab as best defence against seasonal virus

Health news now, and as a new variant of the influenza virus gains ground in the northern hemisphere, the World Health Organization – WHO – on Tuesday backed vaccination as the “most effective defence”.

The new strain is called J.2.4.1 or subclade K and it was first noted in August in Australia and New Zealand; it has since been detected in at least 30 countries.

Dr Wenqing Zhang from WHO warned that the upcoming holiday season could bring a further surge in respiratory illnesses. But she said that available epidemiological data did not indicate that the new variant caused a more severe bout of the flu:

“Although this new variant is not a part of the composition of the current vaccines for Northern Hemisphere season, early evidence suggests that current seasonal vaccines continue to offer protection against severe diseases and reduce the risk of hospitalization. Vaccination remains our most effective defence, including against drifted strains, particularly for high-risk population and those taking care of them.”

Dr Zhang advised all countries to strengthen lab diagnostics and surveillance – and to participate in the WHO’s global disease surveillance network, which is supported by 130 countries.

Identifying new cases of influenza and other respiratory viruses quickly and producing vaccines that will save lives depends on continuing international support for pandemic preparedness, the WHO official insisted.

Daniel Johnson, UN News