Under-Secretary-General
for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths
Remarks
at the 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers
Dr. Jassim Taqui
DG Al-Bab Institute for Strategic Studies
Islamabad, December
19, 2021: Mr. Prime Minister, Excellencies, Ladies, and Gentlemen,
Afghanistan’s economy is now in free fall, and if we don’t act
decisively and with compassion, I fear this fall will pull the entire
population with it.
Twenty-three million people are already facing hunger; health facilities
are overflowing with malnourished children; some 70 percent of teachers are not
getting paid and millions of children – Afghanistan’s future – are out of
school.
The value of the Afghani currency is plummeting, trade is wrecked by a lack
of confidence in the financial sector, and the space for borrowing and
investment has constricted dramatically.
The need for liquidity and stabilization of the banking system is now
urgent – not only to save the lives of the Afghan people but also to enable
humanitarian organizations to respond.
I welcome the decision by the World Bank's Afghanistan Reconstruction
Trust Fund to transfer US$280 million by the end of December to UNICEF and the
World Food Programme. This step should be followed by reprogramming the whole
fund to support the Afghan people this winter.
Families simply do not have the cash for everyday transactions, while
prices for key commodities continue to rise. The cost of wheat and fuel is up
by around 40 percent and food now accounts for more than 80 percent of the
average household expenditure. Basic social services that all Afghans depend on
are collapsing as international development support has frozen up.
By the middle of next year, universal poverty – reaching 97 percent of the
population – could be the next grim milestone. Within a year, 30 percent of
Afghanistan’s gross domestic product could be lost altogether, while male
unemployment may double to 29 percent.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation is coming together today to
express willingness to help avert disaster and contribute to the humanitarian
endeavor. The United Nations stands firmly with you, and in solidarity with the
people of Afghanistan.
Next year, we will seek funding for our largest-ever appeal of US$4.5
billion to help the most vulnerable in Afghanistan. Our plan is a stopgap
measure for over 21 million people who need lifesaving assistance. It must be
funded as a matter of priority.
The crisis is huge. Our humanitarian response is effective and continues
to scale up, thanks to generous donor support and your sustained engagement.
But Afghanistan will not get through the winter on emergency aid alone.
We also need flexible donor funding that can be used to ensure salaries
for public sector workers and support basic services such as health, education,
electricity, and livelihoods.
And going forward, we need continued constructive engagement with the de
facto authorities in a process of meaningful dialogue to clarify what we expect
of each other.
The consequences of inaction on these three fronts are
clear: Afghanistan will collapse, people will run out of hope, and
the region – and indeed the world - will see destabilization increase.
Honorable ministers, Prime Minister, we are gathered here today at a moment
of exceptional gravity for the people of Afghanistan.
We have the advantage of being forewarned of the fate that awaits them
if we do not act. We have the responsibility from being forewarned,
knowing that if we do not act with urgency and with a collective will, then
there will be a terrible reckoning.
We have that chance and that opportunity, given to us by those who
convened this meeting.
We cannot fail to do what we know is right, and what we know is
possible.
Thank you.
