The UN Secretary General’s special representative and head of UNAMA Roza Otunbayeva said that women have remained an integral part of whatever the UN does.

Speaking at the “Islamic Finance Week” launched by UNDP Afghanistan, the UNAMA head reiterated that they were promoting meaningful participation of women in all aspects of the financial and economic sectors.

"Islamic finance is a critical component for economic growth as Afghanistan has decided to use only Islamic finance in its economic, financial frameworks. Islamic finance principles are rooted in ethical and equitable financial practices,” UNDP Afghanistan quoted the UN envoy as saying.

Islamic Finance Week began yesterday (July 22) with participation from other UN agencies, international institutions, embassies and the private sector of Afghanistan.

On their account on X, UNDP Afghanistan said that they have launched ‘Afghanistan Access to Finance’ in 2024, which aims at supporting Islamic banking and women’s access to finance.

The project comes as Afghanistan is still dealing with banking sanctions and the frozen assets which are said to have hindered the development projects in the country.

The Islamic Emirate has repeatedly asked for the release of the assets and lifting the sanctions.