The Federal Foreign Office has made available 200,000 euro in emergency aid for northern Afghanistan, where in many districts heavy rainfall and melting snow have caused severe flooding. A sum of 50,000 euro is to go to each of the worst-hit Provinces of Kunduz, Takhar, Balkh and Badakhshan.

To date the floods have caused dozens of deaths and destroyed hundreds of homes. On 3 May the Afghan disaster protection authority proclaimed a nation-wide state of emergency.

The first relief supplies funded by Germany have now reached their destination: aid agencies are distributing tents, groundsheets and blankets to flood victims. With German assistance roads and irrigation canals are also being cleared and dams strengthened.

Since the start of Germany's engagement in Afghanistan in 2001 the Federal Foreign Office has made available over 85 million euro to help the Afghan Government respond to humanitarian crises.