Afghanistan Times
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KABUL: The rate of poverty is expected to jump 60 to 70 per cent within three months due to threats of the Corona virus, ministry of economy has predicted.
Kabul and other major cities are in full quarantine for three weeks as the virus is spreading. Government and private businesses are closed and people are dissatisfied with the lockdown, saying if the virus wouldn’t kill them, they would certainly die of starvation.
The ministry of economy says that unemployment and poverty were rising unprecedentedly.
Younus Salek, spokesman of the ministry, said Monday that poor families would face difficult condition if the situation continues for three months.
“If the situation goes on as it is now, economic growth would decrease 2.4 per cent, poverty would increase 60 to 70 per cent and joblessness would increase 40 per cent,” Salek said, adding that national income would also reduce.
He said that private business was stopped and thousands of laborers were jobless.
The World Bank has warned that South Asian countries would have the worst economic situations this year that they did not have in the past four decades.
The World Bank has predicted that downturn in Afghanistan would be up to 9.5 per cent.
The government assures to support vulnerable families and control the prices. It has allocated 6.5 billion Afs for fighting Corona virus.
