By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations has paid practically $8 million in salaries to some 23,500 well being staff throughout Afghanistan over the previous month, bypassing the Taliban-run well being ministry in a check case to inject a lot wanted liquidity right into a dire Afghan financial system.

The U.N. growth company UNDP and the World Fund well being support group teamed as much as resurrect a program that had been funded by the World Financial institution till it suspended help when the Taliban ousted the Western-backed Afghan authorities in August.

The United Nations has been struggling to get sufficient money into Afghanistan to assist ship humanitarian support to thousands and thousands of individuals on the point of famine and forestall the collapse of the financial system and well being and training providers.

“Somebody needed to step in. We had been confronted not simply with a well being system that was collapsing, but additionally a monetary system that was collapsing,” UNDP Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, Kanni Wignaraja, instructed Reuters.

“World Fund took the monetary threat, we took the implementation threat to make these funds occur,” she stated. “We have proven it is potential, it will probably work … it goes an enormous lengthy solution to saving a minimum of the individuals’s financial system within the nation.”

The World Fund supplied $15 million, of which practically $8 million was used for salaries, whereas a lot of the remainder was spent on offering primary medical tools, important medicine and provides. UNDP labored out methods to get the funds into the nation and into the arms of well being staff in 31 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces.

Wignaraja stated UNDP wired among the cash to the Afghanistan Worldwide Financial institution after which used a big cash service supplier, which UNDP declined to determine for safety causes, to distribute the remainder.

‘PRETTY CRAZY TEST RUN’

The well being staff paid thus far – working in practically 2,200 well being amenities – had cash deposited into financial institution accounts, whereas one other 2,500 well being staff will shortly be paid in money as a result of they’re in distant areas.

“It is given hope to those households. It is reignited healthcare providers,” stated Wignaraja, including that this system would now be run by the World Well being Group and the U.N. kids’s company UNICEF for the subsequent three months.

“With out this, you actually would have all of the Afghan medical doctors, nurses, technicians, heading throughout borders,” she added.

Throughout that point Wignaraja stated the United Nations would speak to the World Financial institution to see if it was then in a position to take over this system once more or discover a hybrid resolution if the financial institution is unable to get any approvals wanted to take action.

Because the Taliban seized energy the financial system spiraled into disaster. Afghan banks closely relied on bodily U.S. dollar-shipments, which have stopped, whereas billions of {dollars} in Afghan belongings had been frozen overseas. Improvement support was placed on maintain as donors and establishments search to keep away from violating U.N. and unilateral sanctions and to make use of it as leverage over the Taliban.

Wignaraja stated the fee of well being staff salaries over the previous month had helped spark the re-opening of some banks.

“The minute you begin the area people financial exercise and individuals are in a position to deposit cash and take cash these banks are in a position to open their native branches,” she stated.

After exhibiting it might work, the United Nations would proceed utilizing the formal banking system and cash service suppliers to get money into Afghanistan for the subsequent few months, Wignaraja stated, though she added that U.N. businesses had been additionally contemplating a must carry U.S. {dollars} into the nation.

“This has been for us a fairly loopy check run of the system,” she stated of the funds to well being staff, including that she hoped worldwide donors had been “watching it actually carefully.”