Kabul, Nov 29, : Afghanistan’s national currency, the afghani, has continued to devalue in recent years against the US dollar, increasing Afghan people’s financial woes. According to Xinhua news agency, ordinary people believe that the situation has worsened their economic problems, especially with skyrocketing food prices and other basic commodities.
“The exchange rate changes daily.There is no control over the exchange market and no plan to control it.”You know, the afghani currency devaluation directly raises the prices of basic commodities as we import daily necessities to Afghanistan from outside,” Mauloddin, a common name for many Afghan people, told Xinhua.
“My income is in Afghanistan, the price for goods is rising but there is no change to my income.”I want the Taliban administration do something, and to find an economic solution to the crisis,” stated the owner of a small business in northern Samangan.
The exchange rate for Afghani was 96.40 per US dollar in Sarai-e-Shahzada.This is the main market in central Kabul.
It was the lowest exchange rate in over 20 years.
The Asian country has faced multiple economic challenges since the Taliban overthrew Afghanistan in mid-August.
They set up a Taliban-led interim government on September 7.
Particularly, the US freeze of assets worth over $9 billion belonging to Afghanistan’s central banks and a halt to funds by the World Bank (IMF) has had a negative impact on the economic situation.
UN officials in Afghanistan repeatedly warned that Afghanistan’s financial and banking systems are at risk.
According to UN sources, they offered a number of solutions to the crisis including deposit insurance, sufficient liquidity for banks, credit guarantees, and loan repayment delay options for real economy.
“Many cash-strapped family fell prey to the current economic situation.The US is putting pressure on Afghanistan’s banks in order to press the Taliban administration, but the situation is still pressing the ordinary people,” he said.He added, “The current economic situation is insufferable.” We are facing a harsh winter when people cannot buy firewood or coal to keep them warm,” Abdul Shah, a Kabul resident and driver, told Xinhua.
Official data showed that 54.5 percent of Afghans lived below the poverty line in 2019.This figure rose to 72% in 2020.
The afghani was trading at 76 for a US Dollar at the beginning of 2020, 77 in January 2019, 81 in July, and 90 in mid-2018.
Shinwari said that the Taliban should hire economist experts and advisors to solve their economic problems.Shinwari believes there are still excellent experts in the country.
Shinwari stated that the majority of Afghans are now waiting for relief support, as they have lost their income in recent month.Shinwari also noted that government employees had not received their salaries in the last several months.
Da Afghanistan Bank, the central bank, injected $10 million into local exchange markets on November 15 to stop currency devaluation.However, it failed to stop currency weakness.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNOCHA, recently announced that the humanitarian response to Afghanistan is increasing with increased funding and better access to life-saving aid.
According to UN officials, 7.2 million Afghans received food assistance between September 1 and November 2.
The Taliban caretaker government repeatedly appealed to the US to free the Afghan central bank assets.It recently stated that it would soon pay the salaries of three months to hundreds and thousands of government employees.
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