“97% of Afghans could face poverty by mid-2022” – Ismatulla Irgashev

The Special Representative of the President of Uzbekistan for Afghanistan Ismatulla Irgashev told at the AIMC press conference that it is necessary to help the Afghan people, who are experiencing a difficult economic situation.

“There are different views on the new government of Afghanistan, but they promise that there will be no threats from the territory of Afghanistan to other countries in the region. They also express their intention to fight terrorist organizations in cooperation with the world community. I think this is a good signal to the international community.

Our approach in this regard is that we should not repeat the mistakes we made in Afghanistan before, but help them in the current difficult situation. According to the United Nations, 23-24 million Afghans today live in poverty. There are data that this figure could reach 97% of the total population by mid-2022. When we look at the numbers, it’s nothing more than a tragedy and it’s absolutely impossible to remain indifferent.

I would like to emphasize that it is difficult to get the country out of the current severe socio-humanitarian crisis by providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan alone. It is necessary to help restore the country’s national economy, provide jobs for the Afghan people, and implement major infrastructure projects in the country. Then the Afghan people will be able to work, earn money and make a living,” he said.