In view of the impending ban on women working in non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Afghanistan by the Taliban, Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) has questioned the aid for the country.
“Without female employees, organizations cannot continue their work in many areas for half the population,” said Schule, according to a statement on Monday in Berlin. “I am therefore in favor of the current support that we are providing with others being suspended for the time being.”
Schulze announced that she and the World Bank would like to invite participants to the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF) to a meeting. The fund is managed by the World Bank and finances parts of the health and education systems, for example. Germany is taking the initiative as part of its G7 presidency, which it will hold until the end of the year.
In a letter on Saturday, the Afghan Ministry of Economic Affairs demanded that employees of all national and international NGOs be suspended from their work until further notice. The reason for this is that the women did not comply with the regulations of the militant Islamist Taliban leadership in relation to wearing a hijab, i.e. a headscarf. If an organization does not comply with this order, its license will be revoked, the letter said.
