SIGAR: 17% Poverty Rise in Afghanistan Amid COVID-19
A report by the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) indicates that according to World Bank estimates, Afghanistan’s overall poverty level increased from 55% to 72% in 2020 due to economic contraction as the country braced for a second wave of COVID-19 in early 2021.
Beyond the public-health impact, the COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted significant harm on Afghanistan’s economy, exacerbating many existing challenges, said the SIGAR report, which is titled Economic and Social Development.
By the end of 2020, Afghanistan’s unemployment rate was projected to rise to 37.9%, up from 23.9% in 2019, the report says.