EU President has announced a development aid of € 1 billion for Afghanistan to avert major humanitarian crisis
The President of European Commission – Ursula von der Leyen has announced a development aid of €1 billion for the people of Afghanistan, who are under severe crisis after terror-outfit Taliban seized power on August 15, 2021.
The announcement came during the virtual G20 Summit, hosted by Italy. The G20 nations have agreed to work together to avoid a humanitarian disaster in Afghanistan, even if it means having to coordinate efforts with the Taliban.
The funds will help in combating the socio-economic situation in Afghanistan and avert famine and other major humanitarian crisis. The food prices and unemployment have been rising since Taliban came to power. The money adds € 250 million (U.S. $ 288 million) to a € 300 million (U.S. $ 346 million) sum which European Union (E.U.) had previously announced to help the Afghans. The remainder amount will go to neighbouring countries taking in Afghans fleeing the Taliban rule.
Taking it to twitter, Ursula tweeted,
We must do all we can to avert a major humanitarian and socio-economic collapse in Afghanistan.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 12, 2021
We need to do it fast.
Today at the @G20org I will present an Afghan Support Package worth around €1 billion.
She further tweeted,
Our conditions for any engagement with the Afghan authorities are clear, including on human rights.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 12, 2021
But the Afghans should not pay the price of the Taliban’s actions.
The Support Package is for the Afghan people and the country´s neighbours who have provided help.
Detailing the funds, she tweeted,
It includes:
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 12, 2021
•€300m in humanitarian aid already agreed with extra support for vaccinations, sheltering, human rights protection
•At least €250m in 'humanitarian plus' support for urgent needs like health
•Funds to support Afghanistan’s neighbours and enhance security
The announcement follows the discussion of the E.U. Ministers for development to have a calibrated approach to give direct support to the Afghan population in order to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe, without legitimising the Taliban interim Government. This funding will be in direct support of the local population and will be channelled to international organisations on the ground.
The E.U. will also provide safe passage of Afghans and vulnerable groups such as human rights defenders, women, journalists, civil society activists, police and law enforcement officials, judges and professionals of the justice system, including their families, who are affiliated to the E.U. and its Member States.
Separately, after a previous G7 meeting on Afghanistan, the Italian Prime Minister – Mario Draghi had been pushing for a broader discussion involving other world powers.
The G20 Summit was also attended by the President of the United States (U.S.) – Joe Biden, Prime Minister of India – Narendra Modi and all the European leaders. The President of China – Xi Jinping and President of Russia – Vladimir Putin didn’t attend the Summit but sent their representatives to attend the Summit.
There members agreed there is crisis in Afghanistan, where the country’s assets overseas have been frozen, banks have run out of money, civil servants have not been paid and food prices have soared, with millions are at risk of severe hunger as winter approaches.
