The World Bank on Thursday announced the appointment of Faris Hadad-Zervos as the new Country Director for Afghanistan.

Previously, Hadad-Zervos served as the Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

“Mr. Faris Hadad-Zervos has been appointed the World Bank’s new Country Director for Afghanistan, effective today. He succeeds Ms. Melinda Good, who has taken on a new World Bank assignment. Mr. Hadad-Zervos’ most recent assignment was serving as the Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka,” the World Bank stated.

Expressing his enthusiasm for his new role, Hadad-Zervos stated, “I am excited to continue our support to the people of Afghanistan, together with our partners. My first priority is to ensure that the World Bank continues supporting basic services that are so essential to the welfare and future prospects of the Afghan people such as healthcare, education, food security, and livelihoods support, with a focus on ensuring that women and girls benefit.”

He also emphasized the importance of supporting the private sector and micro, small, and medium enterprises, particularly those operated by women, to foster job creation and inclusive growth.

“I am also keen to ensure that we increase our support to the private sector and micro, small and medium enterprises – including those run by women – so the private sector can create much-needed jobs and realize its potential as an engine of inclusive growth,” said Hadad-Zervos.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has welcomed the appointment of a new head of the World Bank office in Afghanistan and said that the bank should resume the work of its incomplete projects in Afghanistan.

According to experts, however, since the sanctions have had a negative impact on the country’s banking system, it is hoped that the expansion of the World Bank’s activities will lead to the improvement of Afghanistan’s economic situation.

Hadad-Zervos, a U.S. national, has been with the World Bank since 1996. His career includes positions as Country Manager in Nepal, Malaysia, and Bolivia, and roles such as Manager of the Technical Cooperation Program with the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Head of Mission for Iraq, and Operations Manager for the West Bank and Gaza.

The United States is working vigilantly to prevent the re-emergence of external threats from Afghanistan, the US State Department said on Thursday.

Vedant Patel, deputy spokesperson of the US State Department, told a press briefing that Daesh is a is a transnational terrorist network that has the ambition and capacity to launch international terrorist attacks.

“And as we consistently say, we’re working to ensure that Afghanistan never serves as a launching pad for terrorist attacks against the United States or our allies. We are taking a whole-of-government approach to our Afghanistan counterterrorism efforts,” he said.

“We are cooperating with partners and allies, including in the immediate region; and we’re working vigilantly to prevent the re-emergence of external threats from Afghanistan, including by working with partners to counteract terrorist recruitment efforts as well,” Patel added.

The Islamic Emirate has repeatedly denied concerns about the use of Afghan territory against countries, saying that no armed groups are currently present in Afghanistan and that Deash has been suppressed and lost its operational capabilities.

Since 2020, nearly 8 million Afghans have migrated, with 85 percent moving to neighbouring countries, predominantly Iran, and almost one million heading to Europe, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.

IOM said in a statement that approximately 70 percent of Afghans migrating to Iran cited the lack of job opportunities as the main factor driving their migration.

It said that since the Islamic Emirate came to power in August 2021, Afghanistan has experienced significant economic contraction and a rise in poverty levels.  As of early 2024, over half of Afghanistan’s population is living in poverty, with nearly 36 percent unable to afford sufficient food, the statement said citing World Bank.

The organization also noted that the number of returnees from Iran remains consistently high. In 2023, IOM registered nearly 1 million returns, with 70 percent being undocumented and 60 percent forcibly returned.

IOM said that many Afghans migrate through unofficial routes due to difficulties in obtaining passports and visas, often paying smugglers to cross informal borders. 

Smugglers, seeking to maximize their profits, often overload these vehicles, putting the lives of migrants at grave risk, IOM said.

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