While the world’s attention has long moved on, the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan remains one of the largest and most acute anywhere.

A record 28.3 million people – some two-thirds of the population – require humanitarian assistance and protection; six million of those are already perilously close to famine, according to the United Nations. Women and girls are especially vulnerable.

The UN’s refugee agency visited Bamyan, a mountainous region in central Afghanistan. This winter was the coldest in more than a decade, and the brutal weather hit the poorest and most vulnerable particularly hard, including those who recently returned to the area after being displaced by decades of conflict.

With nowhere else to go, some families are even sheltering in ancient caves. Others have taken out loans or borrowed from neighbours to withstand Afghanistan’s economic freefall, which has sent food prices skyrocketing.

Names in this gallery have been changed for safety reasons

This photo essay was provided by UNHCR