Boris Johnson has pledged ￡50 million to the Afghanistan appeal to help provide food, shelter and medicine throughout the winter to more than two million Afghans.

       It is believed the money, which will be delivered via the United Nations and the Red Cross, will have a heavy focus on protecting women and girls from gender-based violence.

       The announcement comes two months after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan, after almost two decades of occupation by US and British forces. In September, Mr Johnson pledged ￡286 million in aid to the Afghan people, and this ￡50 million is the first allocation of that sum.

       “Two months ago this week NATO withdrew its final forces from Afghanistan after the most extensive evacuation effort in the alliance’s history, an effort which saved a huge number of lives,” Mr Johnson said on Saturday.

       “We now have a responsibility to protect the people of Afghanistan most at risk under the Taliban regime, particularly women and girls.

       “Today’s funding will provide urgent protection for the most vulnerable people. But preventing a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan and preserving the gains of the last twenty years will require a truly global effort.”

       The announcement from Number 10 comes as the Prime Minister prepares to give a speech at the G20 Summit where he is expected to emphasise the necessity of preserving the right of women to an education, calling it a “Swiss army knife that solves an abundance of problems”.

       On Friday, a group of almost 30 LGBT Afghans arrived in the UK after ministers and charities supported their evacuation from the Taliban-run country.

       The 29 people will be supported by Stonewall, Micro Rainbow and other LGBT charities to set up their new lives in the UK, with Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary, saying Britain would continue to defend “the right of all people to be themselves and love who they want”.

       The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people were being rescued from Afghanistan because they are at risk of potential discrimination and assault.

       Since the end of Operation Pitting in late August, the UK has helped more than 1,300 people, including British and Afghan nationals, leave Afghanistan.