Da Afghanistan Bank: Afghani value up 21% against foreign currencies

KABUL (TOLONews): Da Afghanistan Bank says that in the past four years, the value of the Afghani has increased by 21 percent against foreign currencies, especially the US dollar.

Bank officials state that efforts are underway to stabilize the country’s economy, which include strengthening the Afghani’s value, expanding the banking sector, and boosting financial support.

The bank’s spokesperson added that they have been able to protect the Afghani’s value by implementing appropriate monetary policies and to prevent severe fluctuations in the currency market.

Hasibullah Noori, the spokesperson of Da Afghanistan Bank, said: “In the past year, the Afghani has had a 0.79 percent positive change against foreign currencies, particularly the dollar, which indicates the stability of the Afghani. Our effort is to maintain the Afghani’s stability in a better way and not allow severe fluctuations to occur in this regard.”

He emphasized that important progress has been made in the banking sector and in relations with international banks. Currently, the institution is in contact with 200 international banks and is working to further expand global banking interactions, so traders can conduct international financial transactions more easily.

Some economic analysts, pointing to the banking restrictions of the past four years, say that expanding relations with international banks could play a key role in reducing the impact of these restrictions.

They stress that in order to preserve the Afghani’s value, it is necessary to explore alternative financial reserves or backing.

Trader Omid Haidari said: “The current problem we face in Afghanistan’s banking sector is the lack of support from private banks for our national traders. Whenever we deposit money in private banks, they do not release it for months. We request the leadership of the Islamic Emirate to establish a clear mechanism and sign agreements with private banks so that we can withdraw our money on time.”

Economic analyst Abdul Ghafour Nezami also said: “Afghanistan is currently on the threshold of economic transformation and has taken major steps in this regard. We are witnessing the launch of major projects and investments, which should strengthen the stability of the Afghani day by day. At the same time, the Afghani’s value must be raised against other foreign currencies.”

According to Da Afghanistan Bank, during the past year, 26,000 people received financing through small-scale financial support, and another 16,000 were financed through the banking sector.

The bank’s data further show that banking sector financing has increased by 71 percent compared to the previous year.