World Bank freezes Monetary aid to Taliban-run Afghanistan

The World Bank has suspended aid to Afghanistan, saying it is “deeply concerned” by the situation there, especially regarding women’s rights, after the Taliban seized power, a bank spokesperson told AFP. “We have paused disbursements in our operations in Afghanistan and we are closely monitoring and assessing the situation,” the official said.

“We are deeply concerned about the situation in Afghanistan and the impact on the country’s development prospects, especially for women.” The spokesperson further said the World Bank “will continue to consult closely with the international community and development partners.” It stated that all disbursements in its Afghanistan operations had been paused and the situation was being closely monitored and assessed by them. The suspension follows the Taliban’s swift takeover of Afghanistan, as US forces prepared to complete a withdrawal with a deadline of August 31. Washington last week announced it would deny the Taliban access to the country’s gold and cash reserves, most of which is held overseas. The World Bank is running over two dozen projects ongoing in Afghanistan for its development and has provided $5.3 billion since 2002, mostly in grants, as mentioned on the its website. Currently, it has more than two dozen development projects ongoing in the country. The bank had pulled all of its personnel out of by Friday, according to a bank source. Apart from the World Bank, bodies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have also snapped financial aid to Afghanistan.