Afghan economy gets $32 million cash boost in aid funding

Afghanistan’s Central Bank, Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB), took delivery on Monday of $32 million of funds in aid and transferred it immediately to Afghanistan International Bank (AIB).

In a series of tweets, the central bank welcomed the injection of cash into the economy and said: “The transit of the aforesaid shipment from the airport to the Afghanistan International Bank was facilitated by Da Afghanistan Bank.

“Da Afghanistan Bank will appreciate any humanitarian action that leads to the introduction of currency and assistance to the poor sections of society, and will do its part effectively,” DAB said.

The previous shipment of $19.2 million was delivered in December.

On December 22, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution clearing the way for aid to reach Afghans in desperate need of basic support.

At the time Martin Griffiths, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, described the Council’s passage of the resolution as “evidence of how seriously member states take the shocking levels of need and suffering in the country.”

The adoption followed months of discussions in the Council and broader international community about how to stave off economic collapse in Afghanistan following the country’s takeover by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) in August and the subsequent freezing by Western countries of billions of dollars used by the previous government to ensure the provision of basic services.

Griffiths has said that humanitarian operations in Afghanistan are set to be the largest anywhere in the world in 2022, reaching some 22 million people.

The UN estimates that $2 billion will be needed to lift the incomes of all people up to the poverty line.