Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) and the Afghan Credit Guarantee Foundation (ACGF) have signed a cooperationmemorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening the financial sector and expanding access to financial resources for small, medium and large businesses.

The agreement was signed during a ceremony at the DAB Supreme Council Hall, where DAB First Deputy Governor Sediqullah Khalid said such agreements create opportunities to provide suitable and diverse Islamic financial services to citizens and expand access to financing for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Khalid said that under the agreement, banks and financial institutions will initially receive technical and professional support. He added that five banks and one microfinance institution will receive grants worth around $1 million in the first phase to support financing for small and medium-sized businesses.

He said other banks and financial institutions that meet the required criteria would benefit from the grants and related facilities in later phases.

Khalid also said that attention would be given to facilitating the creation and financing of small businesses for Afghans returning from other countries.

Under the agreement, the two sides will cooperate on strengthening the financial sector, expanding access to financial resources for businesses, promoting Islamic financial services and building the capacity of financial institutions.

Technical and professional assistance, training programs and capacity-building opportunities will also be provided to banking and non-banking financial institutions.

Roger Thomas Piltzer, chairman of the ACGF Board of Trustees, also welcomed the agreement and stressed the importance of continuing and expanding cooperation with Da Afghanistan Bank.

The agreement aims to establish a framework for cooperation between the two sides to strengthen Afghanistan’s financial sector, expand access to Islamic financial services and provide financial resources for small and medium-sized businesses.

Tajikistan has reaffirmed its support for the Afghan people, stressing that peace, stability and economic opportunities in Afghanistan are closely linked to security and sustainable development in the region.

Speaking at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Saturday, Tajik Foreign Minister Sirodjiddin Muhriddin said lasting security and sustainable development in the region are closely connected to the situation in Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan needs peace, stability and economic opportunity,” Muhriddin said.

He added that Tajikistan would continue to support the Afghan people and constructive regional cooperation aimed at achieving a peaceful and stable Afghanistan.

“When Tajikistan speaks about peace, we also speak from experience,” Muhriddin said.

German authorities have identified 488 Afghan nationals for possible deportation to Afghanistan, including 267 who have no criminal convictions, according to figures from the Interior Ministry.

The figures were disclosed in a written response to a parliamentary inquiry by Left Party lawmaker Clara Bünger and reported by German media. They cover cases submitted by Germany’s federal states to the Federal Police between July 8 and September 18. All federal states except Bremen and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern submitted Afghan nationals for possible removal.

Seven Afghan nationals are currently being held in deportation detention at the request of the Federal Police, while another is in custody pending refusal of entry, the ministry said.

The figures come as Germany expands preparations for deportations to Afghanistan. In July, Germany carried out its first deportation of an Afghan national without a criminal conviction since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) returned to power in 2021.

Germany had suspended deportations to Afghanistan following the IEA takeover in 2021. Flights resumed in 2024, initially focusing on people convicted of serious crimes. The government has since moved to broaden removals to some Afghans who have no criminal convictions.

The German government has said deportations should be carried out against people who are legally required to leave Germany and for whom no individual deportation ban applies. Earlier government statements said the initial focus would be on convicted criminals and people considered security threats.

The policy has drawn criticism from opposition politicians and refugee and human rights groups. Bünger questioned the deportation of Afghans without criminal convictions, citing security, humanitarian and human rights concerns in Afghanistan.

Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court has also ruled that the government cannot cancel certain humanitarian admission commitments to Afghans en masse without examining individual cases, adding to legal scrutiny of its Afghanistan policy.

The Interior Ministry says around 250 Afghan nationals have been deported to Afghanistan since the current coalition government took office.