The UN held a high-level virtual pledging event in cooperation with the United Kingdom, Germany and Qatar on Afghanistan, where a total of amount of $2.44 billion had been promised.
The meeting was held on Thursday. The UN earlier said it was seeking $4.4 billion to alleviate the crisis in Afghanistan.
The UN warned that if aid did not immediately arrive in Afghanistan, the situation would deteriorate in the country.
“Without immediate action, we face a starvation and malnutrition crisis in Afghanistan”, said Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary General, while addressing the conference.
“Afghanistan’s economy has effectively collapsed. There is very little cash. More than 80% of the population are in debt, key workers in vital services including schools and hospitals have not been paid for months,” he said.
The European Union announced 113 million euro for vulnerable people in Afghanistan as well as Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan.
However, the Islamic Emirate said it will monitor the distribution of aid provided by the international community.
“We monitor the procedures of its implementation. All the actions taken inside the country are under the supervision of the Islamic Emirate,” said Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
The conference was attended by 41 representatives of countries and organizations.
“The people of Afghanistan need a functioning economy to have any hope of the peace and prosperity that they deserve and it is our hope that we can work together to move things in the right direction,” said a spokesman for the World Bank.
The donors stressed that the aid should not be directed to the current Afghan government.
The Unites States pledged to provide nearly $204 million in humanitarian assistance to help the people of Afghanistan. The pledge was made at the high-level “Pledging Event on Supporting the Humanitarian Response in Afghanistan.”
The US Department of State said that this new funding includes nearly $134 million from the Department of State and more than $70 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), continuing America’s commitment to the Afghan people.
According to the statement, the current amount will bring the total amount to more than $720 million since August 2021.
“This assistance from the United States will support the scaled-up humanitarian response in Afghanistan and neighboring countries through independent humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), International Organization for Migration (IOM), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), by funding the efforts and activities outlined in both the 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan for Afghanistan and 2022 Afghanistan Situation Regional Refugee Response Plan. “ said statement.
The statement adds that US will remain committed to supporting the humanitarian needs of the Afghan people, and to continue to press the Islamic Emirate leadership to abide by its commitments to respect the human rights of all of Afghanistan’s citizens, including the right of Afghan girls to receive an education.
The US Department of State stated that the reversal of this commitment by the rulers of Afghanistan will profoundly harm the Afghan people, the country’s economic growth, and the Islamic Emirates’ ambition to improve their relations with the international community.
Meanwhile, the US welcomes the pledges made by other donors.
