As the heads of the world’s 20 biggest economies kicked off their two days of talks on Saturday, the United Nations said Afghanistan’s economy is collapsing and that the G20 countries should pay attention to Afghanistan’s humanitarian situation.
The UN humanitarian chief Margin Griffiths in an interview with the Associated Press said the people of Afghanistan are in dire need of humanitarian assistance as the winter is approaching.
“So, the message that I would give to the leaders of the G20 is worry about economic collapse in Afghanistan, because economic collapse in Afghanistan will, of course, have an exponential effect on the region,” he said.
He has also said half of Afghan children under age five are at risk of acute malnutrition.
“And the specific issue that I would ask them to focus on first, is the issue of getting cash into the economy in Afghanistan,” Griffiths added.
G20 had held an extraordinary meeting on Afghanistan in early October in Italy in which the participants discussed Afghanistan’s humanitarian situation and promised to support Afghanistan.
The Islamic Emirate on Friday called on the international community to begin disbursing aid pledged at the G20 virtual conference in support of the Afghans.
“The winter is around the corner, so there is an immediate need for the international community to urgently disburse the recently announced nearly one billion euro aid package pledged at a virtual G20 summit for Afghanistan, to all poor, vulnerable and displaced people,” said Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the Islamic Emirate’s Doha-based political office.
Meanwhile, a number of women in a statement asked the G20 leaders to ensure the safety and security of Afghan female political leaders and activists.
