# DEC raised £26m in 2 weeks with Afghanistan appeal

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2022/01/06/dec-raised-26m-in-2-weeks-with-afghanistan-appeal/
- Published: 2022-01-06T08:30:00+00:00
- Author: Melanie May

**By the end of the year, just two weeks after launching its emergency appeal for
Afghanistan on 15 December, the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) had raised £
26m.**

It is estimated that over 8 million people are on the brink of famine in the country,
with 1 million children under the age of five at risk of dying over the next three
months.  

> Your support is saving lives – thank you!
> £26 million raised so farDEC member 
> charities are reaching thousands more families with nutrition, health care, food
> aid, cash, blankets, heaters and clothes to help people keep warm. Thanks to you.
> [https://t.co/RehYFvRaZx](https://t.co/RehYFvRaZx) [pic.twitter.com/N2vU119HCz](https://t.co/N2vU119HCz)
> 
> ## Advertisement
> 
> — DEC (@decappeal) [December 29, 2021](https://twitter.com/decappeal/status/1476157051059453955?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

DEC’s appeal was supported by HRH The Prince of Wales, alongside celebrities including
Gillian Anderson, Dua Lipa and JJ Chalmers. The UK government also provided £10m
in match-funding.

13 of the DEC’s member charities, including Action Against Hunger and Islamic Relief
UK, are currently responding using the appeal funds. Between them they are working
across all 34 provinces of the country, providing food aid and nutritional treatments,
distributing cash grants, supporting farmers to plant seeds, and equipping Afghans
with urgently needed winter kits, to help communities cope with plummeting temperatures
in the weeks ahead. 

The funding will also be used to supply clean drinking water and sanitation to avoid
the spread of water-borne diseases, and to protect women and girls, who are amongst
the most vulnerable. 

Saleh Saeed, CEO of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) said:

> “As we look ahead to 2022 it’s hard to imagine the extent of the suffering in 
> Afghanistan. It’s an unfolding catastrophe. Temperatures are now dropping fast,
> and millions of people are really struggling to cope with hunger and the cold.
>  
> “However, it’s been incredibly heart-warming to see how the British public have
> taken time out of their busy festivities to think about the men, women and children
> who are facing starvation in Afghanistan. My sincerest thanks go out to everyone
> who has donated so generously and the UK government who have matched £10 million
> of public donations, enabling us to reach even more people with life-saving aid.”

After [launching on 15 December](https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/12/15/dec-launches-afghanistan-crisis-appeal/),
the appeal raised £9.5m in its first 24 hours, rising to over £17.5m in its first
five days.

Main image: Afghan Red Crescent/Meer Abdullah. Food and medical aid distribution
by the Afghan Red Crescent.