As the Taliban hailed the international community’s “spirit of cooperation” after two days of talks in Doha earlier this week, Indonesia continued to call for a more inclusive economy in Afghanistan as women’s rights remain limited as the Islamist group enters its third year of rule.
Promoting an inclusive private sector in Afghanistan is essential for the country’s future, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi stressed, with Jakarta expressing its keenness to connect its women entrepreneurs with their counterparts in the Middle Eastern country.
In the first international meeting attended by Afghanistan’s de facto leader, diplomats from more than two dozen countries gathered in Doha for the third meeting of special envoys on Afghanistan.
The meeting, which Afghan women did not attend at the insistence of the Taliban, discussed the country’s economy and the private sector, as well as a possible resolution of problems related to drug trafficking.
Against a backdrop of international sanctions against the Taliban and a freeze on Afghan funds, the Afghan economy has been going through a gloomy period for almost three years, marked by soaring unemployment, a collapse in its gross domestic product (GDP) and price deflation.
World Bank data indicates that Afghanistan’s private sector is struggling, with small businesses owned by women most vulnerable to closure and contributing to economic shocks, as the Taliban continue to issue decrees severely restricting women’s participation in social, political and economic spheres.
