Yesterday, Thursday, the United Nations announced that it had received financial pledges of $2.44 billion from international donors for the provision of humanitarian aid in Afghanistan and neighboring countries this year.
This came in a statement issued by Joyce Msuya, Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at the conclusion of the international donors' conference organized by the governments of Qatar, Germany, Britain and Ireland, in cooperation with the United Nations.
In a statement, the UN official said that 41 donors have pledged more than $2.44 billion for the humanitarian response in Afghanistan and neighboring countries.
At the beginning of the conference, which was held via closed circuits, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed yesterday to donor countries to provide urgent, flexible and unconditional funding for Afghanistan, warning of the deteriorating humanitarian situation in it.
Guterres said that the appeal for funding for Afghanistan last January amounted to 4.4 billion dollars, "but so far the funding has been about 13% of the requested amount."
He added that 95% of Afghans do not find their livelihood, adding that due to the growing poverty, the population is forced to sell their children or human parts to feed their families.
Several countries, including China and Russia, have called for the normalization of business with the banking system in Afghanistan, and the release of their central bank reserves.
In mid-August, the Taliban movement took control of Afghanistan completely, in parallel with the last stage of a US military withdrawal, which was completed at the end of the same month.