The World Bank’s board of directors has approved the transfer of $280 million from a frozen trust fund to two assistance organizations to help Afghanistan cope with a looming humanitarian disaster following the US exit.
According to the sources, the transfer must be approved by the 31 donors to the World Bank-managed Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) before funds can be transferred to the World Food Programme and UNICEF. As per the sources, the donors were scheduled to meet on Friday.
Moreover, as per Reuters, the World Bank board met informally on Tuesday to discuss transferring up to $500 million of the $1.5 billion in the ARTF to humanitarian aid organizations.
Three months after the Taliban seized power as the last US forces withdrew from a 20-year conflict, the 39 million Afghans came in confrontation with a collapsing economy, a winter of food shortages, and escalating poverty.
The aid would help, according to Afghan analysts, but there are still many questions, such as how to transfer funds into Afghanistan without exposing any financial institutions implicated in US sanctions.
While the US Treasury has issued “comfort letters” reassuring banks that humanitarian transactions can be processed, concerns about US sanctions continue to obstruct the passage of even essential commodities such as food and medication.
Any decision to redirect ARTF funds must be approved by all of the organization’s donors, the largest of which is the United States.
The White House and Treasury did not respond to a request for comment on the World Bank board’s approval of the cash being transferred to the World Food Programme and UNICEF.
A World Bank representative acknowledged that the issue had been considered by the bank’s board of directors and that the donors would meet on Friday.
According to a spokesperson, “The board discussed an approach to transfer out funds from the ARTF to humanitarian aid agencies with presence and logistics on the ground to enable basic humanitarian support directly to the people in the country. The ARTF Donors’ Steering Committee is scheduled to meet on Dec. 3 to consider transfers out from the fund.”
