Bonn/Shebergan, 18th January 2008. Welthungerhilfe (German Agro Action) is providing blankets, boots and food for 50,000 Afghans caught in the cold snap in the provinces of Jowzjan and Takhar. Since early January, provinces north of the Hindu Kush have been badly hit by an unusually long cold spell and exceptionally heavy snowfall. The German Foreign Office is supplying more than 90% of the total sum of half a million euros being released for relief measures.

According to reports by local authorities in the province of Jowzjan, the region is witnessing the longest and most severe winter conditions for more than a decade. According to the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority, more than 140 people have died, above all children and the elderly. More than 30,000 livestock animals have also perished.

Many roads are no longer accessible or passable due to snow. Welthungerhilfe's Head of Project in Afghanistan, Uwe Hermann, visited a village home to around 300 families and needed two hours to travel the 60 kilometres. "A lot of people are heating their homes by burning straw because wood is too expensive," he explains. "I saw a lot of children walking through the snow in flip-flops."

Prices for food and firewood have risen steeply: a bundle of firewood (approx. 7 kg) now costs around one euro - about double the previous price. Food and firewood are beyond the means of the poorest members of the community such as widows, war veterans or day labourers.

Welthungerhilfe aims to help 5,000 particularly badly hit families in its project area by providing them with an emergency aid packet. The average size of a family is ten. These aid packets will include blankets, four pairs of boots, twelve pairs of socks, ten litres of cooking oil, seven kilograms of sugar, and 45 kg of flour.

Uwe Hermann is available for interviews in Shebergan.

Welthungerhilfe has been working in Afghanistan continuously since 1980. Welthungerhilfe has spent a total of 75 million euros on the implementation of approximately 100 projects. The main focal points of project work are in the north and east with an emphasis on rural infrastructural development such as drinking water supplies, irrigation projects, food security as well as the environment protection and erosion control. In addition, Welthungerhilfe carries out projects in village development as well as the generation of alternative sources of income for opium farmers.