UN report: Afghanistan teeters on brink of universal poverty

By EDITH M. LEDERER
Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations development agency says Afghanistan is teetering on the brink of “universal poverty” that could become a reality in the middle of next year unless urgent efforts are made to bolster local communities and their economies. It said the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has put 20 years of steady economic gains at risk. In a report Thursday, the U.N. Development Program outlined four scenarios for Afghanistan following the Taliban’s takeover that project the country’s GDP will decline between 3.6% and 13.2% in the next fiscal year starting in June 2022.