Senior govt official calls on Afghan investors to return

KABUL - Deputy Prime Minister of Afghan caretaker government Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has called on Afghan investors to return to the country, the government said on Friday.

He made the remarks at the Afghan National Private Sector Conference held in Kabul on Thursday, the government said in a statement.

"Baradar called on Afghan investors living abroad to return to the country and invest here, as security of investors and their assets will be guaranteed," the statement said.

"International sanctions are being eased day by day and we are trying to provide more facilities in industry, trade and investment, and efforts are being made to improve the economic situation," Baradar was quoted as saying.

On Tuesday, the World Bank board of directors decided to unfreeze $1 billion of the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund which was frozen after the Taliban's takeover on Aug 15, 2021, according to Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB), the country's central bank.

The DAB welcomed the move by the World Bank as a goodwill gesture, calling for further cooperation with the global financial institution in the Afghan banking and financial sectors, according to a statement of DAB.