95% of Afghanistan’s libraries shut down after the Taliban came to power

Ariana News Agency: The Publishers Union of Afghanistan announced the closure of 95% of the country’s libraries after the Taliban took control.

The Publishers Union of Afghanistan announced that 95% of libraries had been closed after the Taliban took control of the country.

The union has said that since the fall of the previous government, the number of people reading has dropped sharply.

Sayed Ahmad Saeed, of the Afghan Publishers’ Union, said the fall of the previous government had profoundly affected the level of education of the people and diminished the culture of reading.

The head of the Publishers Union of Afghanistan added: “Financial challenges have closed the doors of 95% of bookstores and publications in the country.”

Saeedi added: the situation of book sellers and publishers is facing a 90% deadlock. This is because when people do not have bread to eat, clothes to wear and places to live, they do not understand books and reading.

Prior to the fall of the previous government in Afghanistan, there were 180 publishers and 525 bookstores across the country, of which 90 were publishers and about 280 were in Kabul.