World Bank freezes monetary aid to Taliban-run Afghanistan, says 'deeply concerned'

The World Bank has temporarily suspended all monetary aid to Afghanistan, agency sources reported on Wednesday. In a statement, a World Bank spokesperson announced that the body was 'deeply concerned' about the situation and the prospects for women in Afghanistan. It stated that all disbursements in its Afghanistan operations had been paused and the situation was being closely monitored and assessed by them. World Bank is said to have provided $5.3 billion to Afghanistan since 2002. Currently, it has more than two dozen development projects ongoing in the country.

Apart from the World Bank, bodies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have also snapped financial aid to Afghanistan. The IMF has suspended a $370 million loan program and a $340 million financial grant that Kabul was due to receive from the Special Drawing Rights (SDR). The United Nations has seized Afghanistan's assets worth more than $9 billion held by American banks.

Countries, UN bodies suspend resources

Ever since the Taliban overran Kabul and declared the country as an 'Islamic Emirate', almost every nation has frozen economic transactions with Afghanistan. After the takeover, the US was the first country to cut the Taliban's access to billions of dollars of funds. On August 17, it froze accounts at American banks that hosted money from Afghanistan’s national reserves, thereby cutting the group's access to the fortune left by the previous government. Germany, which provides 430 million euros to the country annually, had previously announced that it would stop all financial aid to Afghanistan if Sharia Law was introduced. 

In an attempt to salvage its falling economy, the Taliban has appointed an acting head of the Afghanistan central bank to control the situation. Nearly 10 days into the Taliban takeover, the country has been witnessing chaotic scenarios which have surmounted severe pressure on the nation's economy. Countries and foreign bodies suspending grants and financial aid is further pushing the Taliban and Afghanistan into an economic crisis. Reports have stated that the Taliban is trying to persuade senior officials and technical experts to return to work to revive the economy.

(With Agency Inputs)