Exclusive-World Bank works to redirect frozen funds to Afghanistan for humanitarian aid only -sources

FILE PHOTO: A mother shops with her children at the market in Kabul, Afghanistan October 29, 2021. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The World Bank is finalizing a proposal to deliver up to $500 million from a frozen Afghanistan aid fund to humanitarian agencies, people familiar with the plans told Reuters, but it leaves out tens of thousands of public sector workers and remains complicated by U.S. sanctions.

Board members will meet informally on Tuesday to discuss the proposal, hammered out in recent weeks with U.S. and U.N. officials, to redirect the funds from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), which has a total of $1.5 billion.