KABUL (SW) – The rich natural resources could serve as a major source of funding for Afghanistan’s socio-economic development, experts said on Thursday.
According to UNDP’s Human Development Report 2020, to ensure sustainable development, a balance needs to be struck between the exploitation of natural resources and the preservation of the environment.
Speaking at the launch of the report, Sweden’s ambassador to Kabul, Torkel Stiernlof emphasized upon the need of responsible exploitation of resources in harmony with the nature.
Abdullah al-Dardadi, UNDP Resident Representative for Afghanistan, also called on countries to help Afghanistan raise the benchmark for human development and achieve sustainable development goals. “Afghanistan wants to be self-sufficient and benefit from aid, and we must make sure that more aid is provided to this country,” Dardadi added.
The co-author of the report, Swarnim Wagle, said on the occasion that the global warming and climate change are affecting the planet’s condition over time.
Ezatullah Siddiqui, deputy director of the Afghanistan Environment Protection Agency, highlighted the impacts of increase in population, urbanization and climate change in the context of Afghanistan.
The 2020 UN Human Development Index report shows Afghanistan securing the 169th slot out of all 189 countries listed in this report.
According to the report, Afghanistan’s human development index in 2019 increased by 69.2 percent between 1990 and 2019. The report stated that the index of human development of women in Afghanistan in 2019 was equal to 0.391 and for men it was 0.593.
According to the report, life expectancy at birth in Afghanistan has increased by 14.5 years, the average number of years of education (average age of a 25 years and older) improved by 2.4 years to 7.6 years
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