Statement on the current situation in Afghanistan:
The Afghanistan Committee (NAC) is a solidarity organization that works for people in rural and hard-to-reach communities throughout Afghanistan. Our main goal is to reduce poverty and contribute to improving the quality of life. NAC is working hard to ensure that we can continue our work, because our work is more important now than ever before.
Before reopening all our projects, we wait for guidelines from the new government for the work of international organizations in Afghanistan. These policies will be important to ensure the safe operation of our projects and offices and ensure the security for all our female and male colleagues.
NAC have received guarantees from the Taliban that NAC employees will not be harmed, and they have pledged to the UN that the safety and security of humanitarian and development workers, and humanitarian access to people in need, will be guaranteed.
The new government have stated that they remain committed to cooperating with the development and humanitarian sector to ensure assistance is delivered to the people of Afghanistan.
NAC is a non-governmental organization; we are therefore not part of the Norwegian government and have no authority concerning asylum or immigration policies in any country. We fully understand the concern of many Afghans but are not able to aid anyone in an evacuation from Afghanistan, NAC staff, former employees, or others.
The safety of all NAC employees has been guaranteed, and so far, none of our more than 800 employees have experienced any harassment or threats because of their connection to our organization.
We are committed to continue our development and humanitarian work for the people of Afghanistan. We remain independent and our work will not be dictated by political, religious, or commercial actors or interests. NAC has worked in Afghanistan for forty years, under several different regimes, and we remain committed to the Afghan people, regardless of who governs the country.
