Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in mid-August, the conflict-stricken nation has been dealing not only with political turmoil but also a severe economic crisis and increasing poverty.
The Taliban takeover saw billions of dollars in central bank assets frozen and international financial institutions suspend access to funds.
Some $9.5 billion (€8.2 billion) in central bank reserves remain blocked outside the country and the international support given to the previous government has dried up.
The departure of foreign forces and many international donors has left the country without the grants that financed three quarters of public spending.
Over the past few months, the new Taliban government has struggled to pay salaries owed to civil servants while food prices have soared and banks have faced a cash crunch.
The IMF said last month that Afghanistan’s economy was set to contract by as much as 30% this year.
‘One step away from starvation’
The economic disruption, combined with a severe drought and the coronavirus pandemic, has worsened poverty and left millions without work and facing acute hunger.
Some 8.7 million people are “one step away from starvation,” Mary-Ellen McGroarty, head of the World Food Program in Afghanistan said in October.
Many Afghans are selling possessions to buy food, and urban communities are facing food insecurity on levels similar to rural areas for the first time.
It’s not just poor people who have been affected. Even much of the country’s middle class are now fighting poverty as the Afghan economy teeters.
Sharifa (name changed), a female ex-government official who previously worked for the women’s affairs department, says she is now not only unemployed but also fears retribution from the Taliban.
“I have been unemployed since three months. I have sold all my household items and bought food items with the income,” said the mother of two, who asked not to be named due to fear of reprisals.
