Norway will resume its aid to Afghanistan, but only through international and non-governmental organizations, Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK).
“The situation in Afghanistan is catastrophic. 97% of the country’s population is at risk of falling below the poverty line,” Huitfeldt said, emphasizing that Norwegian aid will not be channeled through the Taliban.
“We want to channel it through the UN apparatus, and we want it to be directed at women’s organizations in Afghanistan,” she told NRK.
Norway has set aside NOK 325 million in support of Afghanistan in 2021, according to the channel.
Famine
Norway and many other countries stopped their aid to Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover in August. The takeover was followed by a chaotic withdrawal of Western personnel and Afghans who helped the United States and NATO.
The Taliban promised to restore stability in the country but are struggling with international sanctions and bloody attacks by the extremist group IS-K.
Since then, an increasingly serious food crisis has arisen. In late October, several aid organizations warned that 22 million Afghans would suffer from acute food shortages this winter. Five million of them are children.
UN sources told AFP that the crisis in Afghanistan was already more serious than the situation in Yemen and Syria.
“Afghanistan is now going through one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises – if not the worst – and food security has collapsed,” David Beasley, head of the World Food Program (WFP), said.
Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews
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