Struggling to survive in cash-starved Afghanistan

The Afghan economy has been left shattered by the aftershocks of the Taliban takeover, and even raising around $100 is a major challenge for the child’s father, Abdul Bari, a farmer from the remote west of the country.

Previously in Afghanistan, around 75% of public spending was derived from foreign grants.

Those grants have stopped since the Taliban came to power, though humanitarian aid has continued, and around $9bn (£7bn) of Afghanistan’s foreign reserves have been frozen, leading to a shortage of both funds and physical cash in the country.

A report from the World Bank last week warned that more than a third of the population was now no longer able to meet basic food needs.