PAKISTAN has always shown its open-heartedness towards the Afghan brothers and sisters and gone an extra length to address its problems.
Prime Minister Imran Khan during a meeting with the Interim Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi demonstrated the same spirit and assured Pakistan will extend full support to the Afghan people in meeting the dire challenges.
He further stated that in the current context, Pakistan would favourably consider Afghanistan’s request for transportation of wheat offered by India through the Wagah border.
Under the current arrangement, Pakistan does not allow the two-way trade for India and Afghanistan through the Wagah border. It only allows Afghanistan to export goods to India.
Hence, the very announcement by the PM depicts how much Pakistani government and people care for the Afghan brethren. This is also need of the hour.
According to a report of the United Nations World Food Program and Food and Agriculture Organization, Afghanistan is on the brink of a starvation crisis, with more than half its population — some 22.8 million people — projected to face acute food insecurity this winter.
Another report states that nearly 19 million Afghans, or 45 percent of the population, are experiencing high levels of food insecurity.
Children are a particular concern because everybody understands that the consequences of hunger on a child can affect them the rest of their lives.
Afghanistan’s economy has declined sharply in recent months, in large part because of the evaporation of international aid when the Taliban returned to power in August. Banks have run out of cash.
Remittances from Afghans abroad have also declined. Whilst Pakistan is doing whatever it can, even considering opening border for arch rival India for transportation of wheat, the world community will also have to come forward in a big manner to address the miseries of Afghan people.
The western countries are emphasizing on the education of girls and we also really support it but how will they get education when they have no access to food.
Similarly, the Afghan government is unable to pay salaries to teachers. The so-called human rights champions will have to reconsider their approach.
Instead of dictation, they should sit with the Afghan authorities to take the country in the right direction and this will happen only with flow of adequate aid both in cash and kind and unfreezing the assets of Afghanistan.
