Christian Aid and ActionAid on Monday became the latest foreign aid groups to suspend operations in Afghanistan after the country's Taliban rulers ordered all NGOs to stop women staff from working.
Announcements by the two groups take to six the number of bodies who have paused their operations in the country.
Christian Aid was "rapidly seeking clarity... and urging the authorities to reverse the ban", head of global programmes Ray Hasan said in a statement.
"Whilst we do this, we are unfortunately pausing the work of our programmes," he added.
ActionAid said that if women were banned from working with the group it would "prevent us from reaching out to half of the population that are already reeling from hunger".
"ActionAid has made the difficult decision to temporarily halt most of its programmes in Afghanistan until a clearer picture emerges," it said in a statement.
On Sunday Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE all announced they were putting their operations on hold.
The International Rescue Committee, which provides emergency response in health, education and other areas and employs 3,000 women across Afghanistan, also said it was suspending services.
"Millions of people in Afghanistan are on the verge of starvation," Christian Aid's Hasan said on Monday.
"Reports that families are so desperate they have been forced to sell their children to buy food are utterly heartbreaking," he said, adding that a ban on women aid workers would "only curtail our ability to help the growing number of people in need".
The ban is the latest blow against women's rights in Afghanistan since the Taliban reclaimed power last year.
Less than a week ago, the hardline Islamists also barred women from attending universities, prompting global outrage and protests in some Afghan cities.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Taliban Minister Says Women's Education Ban Caused Public Disconnect "Internal Issue Of Afghanistan": Taliban On Ban On Women Working For UN "If Mother, Sister Can't...": Afghan Professor Tears Up Diplomas On TV What Trump Rally Shooter Did On Last Day Of His Life Under-Fire Trainee IAS Officer Accuses Pune Collector Of Harassment Trainee IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Recalled To Academy, Training Put On Hold Elon Musk To Move Companies Out Of California Over Transgender Law Four In Five Americans Fear Country Is Sliding Into Chaos: Polls Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 Launched In India; Prices Start At Rs. 2.39 Lakh Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.