The World Bank has suspended disbursements in Afghanistan

The World Bank announced that it had suspended disbursements for its operations in Afghanistan. It decided to do so after the radical Islamist movement Taliban took control of virtually the entire country. The institution is closely monitoring and evaluating the situation in the Asian country, Reuters and AFP said, citing a World Bank spokesman. "We are deeply concerned about the situation in Afghanistan and (what it will have) the impact on the country's development prospects, especially on women," the spokesman said. According to him, the institution is finding out ways to continue to operate in the country and maintain "hard-won development successes". The situation will be consulted with the international community and development partners. Since 2002, the World Bank has knocked more than $ 5.3 billion on development projects in Afghanistan. It has also raised $ 13 billion for a specialized land reconstruction fund, which it also manages. It has pledged a total of $ 800 million to the country this year, according to The New York Times. Afghanistan will also not be able to draw on the resources of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which announced the freezing of funds for the country last week. It justified its decision with ambiguities regarding the recognition of the government in Afghanistan by the international community. This week, the country was to receive about $ 450 million from the IMF from a package to help developing countries with the economic impact of the pandemic. Afghanistan has already been cut off from the money by the United States. They hold most of Afghanistan's central bank reserves, totaling about $ 9.5 billion. The United States has denied the country access to these resources, and according to the central bank governor, the Taliban has access to only 0.1 to 0.2 percent of Afghan financial reserves. However, due to international isolation, the country is running out of US dollars as the value of the Afghan currency collapses. Experts warn of the country's financial collapse and hyperinflation.