Addressing Hunger in Afghanistan, with John Sifton and Patti Gossman

Financial Crime Matters

Kieran talks with John Sifton, advocacy director, and Patti Gossman, associate Asia director, at Human Rights Watch about the dire humanitarian situation in Afghanistan following the return of the Taliban to power. “One in three families is facing food insecurity” from malnourishment to starvation, says Patti, adding that the crisis is affecting not only the already impoverished, but middle-class and working-class people who are no longer paid for their jobs and have no access to their savings. “Sanctions on Afghanistan are an important part of the economic crisis, but they are not the root cause” as actions by the U.S. Treasury have improved the flow of funds to private banks, John says. “But that’s not solving any of the larger macroeconomic problems and liquidity problems,” John argues, in calling for an end to the isolation of the Afghan central bank from the international banking system.