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Two weeks ago, after the Taliban occupied Kabul, the money transfer company suspended its services in Afghanistan.
Western Union said on Thursday that it suspended operations in Central Asian countries two weeks ago due to the Taliban’s advance to Kabul. The company said on Thursday that it would resume remittance services to Afghanistan.
“Starting from September 2, 2021, Western Union is pleased to announce that it will resume remittance services to Afghanistan, enabling customers from 200 countries and regions to send money to relatives in that country again,” the world’s largest remittance -The transfer company said in a statement on its Twitter account.
The company also stated that it will provide a two-week transfer fee of $0 for all funds transferred to Afghanistan between September 3 and 17.
As the security situation in the capital deteriorated, Western Union and MoneyGram International, another global remittance provider, suspended services in Afghanistan earlier last month.
This week, the bank in Afghanistan reopened, paving the way for money transfer companies to carry out services, distribution and collection.
— Western Union (@WesternUnion) September 2, 2021
In an interview with Reuters, Jean Claude Farah, President of Western Union’s Asia, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said that the United States’ efforts to promote humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people gave the company the confidence to restart operations.
Farah told Reuters: “Most of our business in Afghanistan is low-value families and remittances that support the basic needs of the people there. This is the foundation we have and the reason we want to restart our business.”
The flow of funds for overseas migrant workers is a key lifeline for many Afghans and has helped the economy of one of the world’s poorest countries survive years of conflict and political and economic instability.
The United Nations said that in the second drought in four years, about half of the Afghan population needs assistance.
The Taliban is classified as a “terrorist organization” by the United States and the United Kingdom. This prohibits the company from conducting financial transactions with the group.
But US President Joe Biden stated that his administration is committed to allowing humanitarian work to continue in Afghanistan.
“We will continue to engage with the U.S. government and other parties to understand their policies and what long-term Taliban-related regulatory framework will be developed,” Farah told Reuters.
The World Bank estimates that remittances to Afghanistan will reach 789 million U.S. dollars in 2020, accounting for about 4% of the country’s GDP, which is lower than the 829 million U.S. dollars in 2019.
However, Western Union said on Thursday that some restrictions will still exist. Payments will be made in U.S. dollars or the Afghani currency, and are only available in certain places, mainly in Kabul.
At the same time, the outbound service-sending money abroad-is currently suspended.
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