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EU special envoy warns of ‘harsh winter ahead’ for Afghans
Wrapping up a five-day visit to Afghanistan, the EU’s special envoy Tomas Niklasson said on Monday more humanitarian assistance is needed to get Afghans through the harsh winter ahead.
In a statement issued Monday night, Niklasson said: “Despite generous donations by taxpayers and governments, including 300M euros by the European Union, the UN humanitarian appeal for Afghanistan remains grossly underfunded.”
He called on other countries, “including China, Russia and the OIC, to step up their support significantly.”
He also said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) “throughout the country must refrain from attempts to interfere in or control the delivery of humanitarian assistance while instead ensuring humanitarian access and full respect for International Humanitarian Law.”
Niklasson said: “There is a need to stabilize the economy and provide opportunities for Afghan men and women to employment.”
He noted that UN sanctions against individual members of the IEA were playing a role and that “despite efforts by the UNSC and by the United States to give assurances to international banks and companies to allow for legal financial transactions with Afghanistan there is a tendency among international financial institutions to over-comply with the sanctions, which makes it difficult to transfer money into or out of Afghanistan.”
In addition, foreign currency reserves of the Afghan Central Bank remain frozen abroad, he said adding that the EU was however contributing to solutions by providing assistance.
He said more than 300 million euros has been provided to address basic needs in education and health and to provide livelihoods. Since August last year, the EU has provided more than 600 million euros to the people of Afghanistan, he said.
However he urged the IEA to focus on the economic crisis and to create an enabling environment for greater investment.
“In the short term they could look favorably on proposals made by the UN to facilitate the access of Afghan companies to foreign currency through a humanitarian exchange facility.
“They could take concrete steps to reassure Afghans and the international community about the independence of the Afghan Central Bank and its capacity to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
“They could provide legal clarity and a functioning court system. They could promote job opportunities for women rather than restricting their ability to work,” he said.
He said the IEA should ensure schools open throughout the country for boys and girls, young women and men adding that if “if secondary schools remain closed for girls, and with limited enrolment for boys, there will soon not be any students who can enroll for higher education. And a few years later there will not be the engineers, accountants, architects, teachers, midwives, nurses and doctors to build and sustain a future Afghanistan.”
Niklasson said the EU remains committed to keeping Afghanistan on the international agenda but while Afghanistan may be the Heart of Asia, it will not always be the central focus of the world.
Bayat Foundation has announced it has distributed Ramadan aid packages to dozens of needy families in Bamyan province.
These aid packages include flour, oil, and rice, intending to assist those in need during the holy month of Ramadan.
Officials from the foundation stated that these donations will be extended to needy families in other provinces of the country by the end of Ramadan.
“As part of the Bayat Foundation’s ongoing assistance, today we are distributing Ramadan aid packages in Bamyan province. These packages contain flour, rice, and oil,” said Sayed Hakim, a representative of the Bayat Foundation in Bamyan.
Meanwhile, recipients of the aid have called on other charitable organizations to also rush to assist those in need during this month.
One recipient expressed gratitude: “Thanks to the Bayat Foundation for considering help for people like us.”
Another recipient added: “Thank you to the Bayat Foundation for helping us, and we hope that in the future, more aid will be provided to the poor people of Bamyan.”
In addition to supporting public welfare projects, healthcare, and those affected by natural disasters, the Bayat Foundation has been providing food and non-food aid to thousands of needy families in the center and provinces of Afghanistan during each Ramadan for nearly two decades.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry on Thursday called on the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to take visible and verifiable action against militants who, it said, enjoy sanctuaries inside Afghanistan.
“Terrorist threat against Pakistan from terrorist entities including TTP, BLA and ISKP is our foremost concern,” Shafqat Ali Khan, Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesperson, said. “We continue to impress upon interim authorities to take visible and verifiable action against them, keeping in view their commitments given to the international community to dismantle terrorist infrastructure and groups from the Afghan soil.”
Regarding Afghan refugees, he confirmed that the deadline for their deportation remains unchanged. Pakistan had set March 31 as the deadline for Afghan Citizenship Card holders and illegal foreigners to leave Pakistan voluntarily.
On border issues, Shafaqat Ali Khan informed that the Torkham border was reopened on Wednesday, with pedestrian travel allowed from Friday. The border will remain open until April 15, and a permanent solution is being sought. There won’t be any construction by Afghan side inside the Pakistani territory, he said.
On militancy, he said that Pakistan is taking robust actions, but it is impossible to completely seal off the border with Afghanistan.
IEA has previously rejected Pakistan’s claims that terrorists have sanctuaries in Afghanistan.
Acting Minister of Education Habibullah Agha says content contradicting religion and Afghan traditions will be removed from the curriculum, and that in addition to religious studies, the ministry is also focusing on modern sciences.
Marking the beginning of the 1404 academic year in Kabul, Habibullah Agha stressed that both religious and modern sciences are essential nowadays in Afghanistan.
He emphasized that the Islamic Emirate is committed to both fields of knowledge and urged people not to be deceived by negative propaganda.
“In this era, we have a great need to learn modern sciences. We must progress with these sciences and prepare ourselves to compete with the world,” said Agha.
He clarified that only through mastering modern sciences can the nation safeguard its people, government, health, and geography.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs Abdul Salam Hanafi, who was also present at the event, reaffirmed the leadership’s commitment to fulfilling the Ministry of Education’s needs to establish a high-quality education system in Afghanistan.
Salam Hanafi stressed that the ministry must work to meet the country’s current educational demands.
He stated: “Enhancing teachers’ capabilities, addressing literacy issues, monitoring classroom activities, and improving the quality of both religious and public schools—these are the responsibilities of the Ministry of Education.”
Meanwhile, several government officials claimed that despite efforts by adversaries to tarnish the reputation of the IEA through a ‘cold war’, Afghanistan continues to make progress every day.
The 1404 academic year however began without reopening schools for girls above the sixth grade.
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