AFGHANISTAN / O’BRIEN PRESSER

UN humanitarian chief Stephen O’Brien called on the international community to urgently scale up support for some one million anticipated to be “on the move” in Afghanistan by the end of the year. UNAMA / UNIFEED-UNTV

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:01:25
• Production Date: 7 September 2016
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: STEPHEN O'BRIEN
• Corporate Name: OFFICE FOR THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS - OCHA
• Subject Topical: HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE; INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS
• Geographic Subject: AFGHANISTAN
• MAMS Id: 1702764
• Parent Id: 1702764
• Alternate Title: unifeed160907b

Description

STORY: AFGHANISTAN / O’BRIEN PRESSER
TRT: 01:25
SOURCE: UNAMA / UNIFEED-UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 07 SEPTEMBER 2016, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

Shotlist

07 SEPTEMBER 2016, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

1. Wide shot, press briefing room
2. Pan right, press briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
“We anticipate one million people will be on the move by the end of this year in Afghanistan. This would be a difficult number for any country to cope with. The displaced families and communities are a mix of refugees returning from Pakistan, and hundreds of thousands of people who have been forced from their homes this year due to the conflict in Afghanistan. There are also hundreds of thousands of Afghans living without documents who are being threatened with a forced return from neighbouring countries.
4. Wide shot, O’Brien speaking to the press
5. Close up, journalist writing
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
“The United Nations and our humanitarian partners are ready to scale up the response, but we urgently need international support and funding. I commend the international community of their engagement, and encourage all donors to continue to stand by the people of Afghanistan to provide practical hope for the future.”
7. Med shot, cameras
8. Close up, O’Brien on camera preview screen
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen O’Brien, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
“This is what we need to meet peoples immediate lifesaving needs and their protection needs in the next four months, till the end of this year.”
10. Wide shot, press briefing room

Storyline

United Nations (UN) humanitarian chief Stephen O’Brien called on the international community to urgently scale up support for some one million anticipated to be “on the move” in Afghanistan by the end of the year.

Speaking at a press conference in Kabul today (7 Sep), O’Brien said the sudden influx in displaced people in the country was due to several factors including refugees returning from Pakistan and hundreds of thousands being forced from their homes due to ongoing fighting in the country. He added that a large number of “Afghans without documents” were being threatened with forced return from neighbouring countries.

He said the humanitarian community in Afghanistan decided to launch a flash appeal of US$150 million to respond to the urgent lifesaving needs of those newly displaced over the next four months.

The UN humanitarian office (OCHA) said the prolonged impact of the conflict in Afghanistan was severe as humanitarian needs increased and access constraints escalated. OCHA said some 2.7 million people, including a million children under the age of five, were facing malnutrition in the country. Only 35 per cent of children with severe acute malnutrition are being reached and of those, only 25 per cent are actually cured. O’Brien said the UN and its partners were ready to scale up the response, but urgently needed international support and funding.