Afghan Returnees Struggle with Employment and Housing Challenges Amid Economic Crisis

Afghan returnees face significant challenges in securing employment and housing after years abroad.

Six Million Afghans Return Home in the Last Three Years

An Afghan family that returned from Pakistan eight months ago is struggling to find work. One family member, who preferred to remain anonymous, expressed concerns about the lack of job opportunities and the difficulties of meeting daily needs, stating, “Wherever I apply for work, I receive negative responses.”

Another woman in Kabul, who also requested anonymity due to the sensitive nature of her situation, lamented her and her children’s homelessness, saying, “We are currently living in the homes of relatives and friends, and we really don’t know how long this situation will last.”

Unprecedented Numbers of Returnees to Afghanistan

These two stories are part of the wider challenges faced by millions of Afghans who have returned to their homeland in recent years. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), approximately 6 million Afghan migrants have returned home in less than three years, marking an unprecedented wave of repatriation. The International Organization for Migration has reported that nearly four million Afghans returned from neighboring countries in the last year and a half alone.

In the first two weeks of August this year, 48,000 Afghan migrants returned from Iran and Pakistan. This comes at a time when Afghanistan is grappling with severe economic poverty and a significant decline in international aid.

Challenges Faced by Afghan Returnees

As the number of returnees grows, issues like unemployment and lack of shelter have become critical problems. Despite the Taliban government’s claims of establishing numerous housing complexes for these returnees, many report that the land distribution process is sluggish and the allocated land is very limited. Hamdullah Fatret, a spokesman for the Taliban, stated that land distribution is currently taking place in about 30 settlements and that 59,133 plots have been allocated to returnees so far.