World Bank, UN body sign $20mn partnership to support Afghanistan

KABUL: The United Nations Development Progamme (UNDP) has signed a USD 20 million partnership agreement with the World Bank to support humanitarian, economic, and social development initiatives across all eight regions and 34 provinces of Afghanistan.

In a statement, UNDP said the new partnership will provide tailored capacity building to NGO/CSOs within their work environment and support their Quick Impact Projects (QIPs).

"Given UNDP's decades of experience and expertise in supporting economic revival and fragile communities, the agency will select 400 NGOs and CSOs based on their capacity for swift outreach, engagement, and project design," the UNDP said.

The QIPs will aim to enhance access to health, education, agriculture and food security and livelihood activities for vulnerable and marginalized communities, including persons with disabilities.

Due to the prolonged conflict in the country, NGOs and CSOs have played a critical role in the service delivery of humanitarian and development activities in hard-to-reach areas of Afghanistan.

However, since the sudden political changes in August 2021 and the subsequent departure of major donors, the financial and operational management capacities of the NGO/CSOs have worsened.

"We thank the World Bank for showing solidarity and support to the NGOs and CSOs in Afghanistan and helping them grow when they need it most," said UNDP Deputy Resident Representative Surayo Buzurukova. "This project also emphasizes UNDP's priority in strengthening partnerships on the ground that is indispensable in supporting us to respond swiftly and flexibly to the community."

This is the latest project approved through World Bank's Approach 2.0, an expanded approach to support the people of Afghanistan based on the request of Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) donors and the international community.

According to UNDP, the approach will guide the provision of over USD 1 billion in funds from the ARTF in the form of recipient-executed grants to selected United Nations agencies and international NGOs.

The initiative is also part of the UNDP-led, Area-based Approach for Development Emergency Initiative (ABADEI), a commitment to support community resilience through area-based integrated programming.

The strategy aims to sustain essential services and address basic human needs for the people of Afghanistan in times of crisis by bringing UN agencies and non-governmental organizations together to provide community-level solutions that complement the urgent humanitarian interventions.

Against this backdrop, the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has consistently urged that aid be distributed in coordination with government offices, TOLOnews reported.