The UN secretary-general is convening an international meeting on Afghanistan May 1-2 in Doha, where envoys will seek a "durable way forward" for the war-ravaged nation, his spokesman said Wednesday.
Antonio Guterres will host the closed-door gathering featuring special envoys on Afghanistan from various countries who aim to "clarify expectations" on concerns including the Taliban authorities' restrictions on women, according to spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
"The purpose of this kind of small group meeting is for us to reinvigorate the international engagement around the common objectives for a durable way forward on the situation in Afghanistan," Dujarric told reporters at UN headquarters.
Guterres "continues to believe that it's an urgent priority to advance an approach based on pragmatism and principles, combined with strategic patience, and to identify parameters for creative, flexible, principled and constructive engagement."
It was unclear at this stage whether or not Taliban leadership would be represented at the talks.
The United Nations mission in Afghanistan has launched an assessment of its operations following a ban on Afghan women working for the world body.
The announcement of the meet in Qatar's capital followed remarks Monday by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, who addressed the prospect of the envoys gathering to discuss the "baby steps" that could put the Taliban government back on the pathway to recognition by the international community, albeit with conditions attached.
On April 4 the Taliban authorities banned Afghan women from working for UN offices countrywide, sparking opprobrium from the West and a United Nations review of the world body's Afghanistan operations.
The announcement of the Doha meeting comes a day after the UN said the number of Afghans in poverty had nearly doubled to 34 million since the Taliban takeover.
There is no contemporary census data for Afghanistan but the UN uses a population estimate of 40 million, meaning 85 percent of the nation is projected to be in poverty.
