Highlights:
- Most nations have refused to recognise the Taliban rule as a result, the money is barely coming in.
- According to the United Nations, four million Afghans are suffering a “food emergency.”
- During a UN summit on Monday, the world community decided to provide more than $1 billion humanitarian relief to the people of Afghanistan.
Afghanistan has been under a financial constraint since the Taliban gained charge, with global help freezing and daily withdrawal limits set on bank accounts. According to a New York Post report, most Taliban insurgents have not received money in months.
Most nations have refused to recognise the Taliban rule, which officially refers to Afghanistan as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. As a result, the money is barely coming in.
Following the Taliban takeover, international aid was suspended, and loans were halted by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The United States also halted the transfer of $9.4 billion in reserves to the central bank of the country. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) also requested that Taliban assets be blocked by its 39 member countries.
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In such a situation, Afghanistan’s economy is collapsing and prices are skyrocketing. The United Nations warned this week that 97% of Afghanistan’s population may soon fall below the poverty line, an alarming increase from the pre-Taliban takeover figure of 72%.
According to the New York Post, a large number of Taliban militants outside of major towns are living on very little food and sleeping in vehicles or whatever appropriate shelter they may find. The article further stated that people of the local community provide food and other supplies to Taliban fighters.
The Taliban have previously placed a $200 withdrawal restriction on citizens who travel long distances to visit a city and then queue for hours to withdraw cash. Since the Taliban’s takeover, many banks have been shut down, and those that are still operating have curtailed cash withdrawals.
Meanwhile, the UN stated on Tuesday that four million Afghans are facing a “food emergency,” with the majority living in rural regions where $36 million is urgently required for winter wheat sowing, animal feed, and financial support for vulnerable families, the elderly, and the disabled.
According to Rein Paulsen, head of the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Office of Emergencies and Resilience, this crisis is marked by “severe gaps in food consumption, very high levels of acute malnutrition, and excess mortality.”
On Monday, the international community agreed to deliver more than $1 billion in humanitarian aid to the people of Afghanistan during a UN conference in Geneva. The Taliban government’s acting foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, thanked the international community for its assistance and stated that the Taliban government desires strong bilateral ties with all countries, including the United States.
