Afghanistan: Daily wagers in 'dire' condition after Taliban siege
Sep 10, 2021
Kabul [Afghanistan] September 11 : The Taliban takeover has brought an unprecedented crisis in Afghanistan with the economy plummeting day by day and daily wagers not getting enough work to support their family, pushing them towards hunger.
Earlier, approximately 46 per cent of daily wagers were getting work but the number has rapidly dropped by four per cent since the Taliban has ousted the democratically elected government, The Frontier Post reported citing a report from Pajhwok News.
A daily wage labourer Ali Khan, who is a resident of Afghanistan's Qala-i-Wahid told Pajhwok that before the collapse of Kabul, 300 to 400 daily wagers came there, out of which, 150 to 200 would find work.
But since the Taliban's takeover, 400 people still come to this square daily to find work, but a handful of them was hired and the rest going without jobs, he informed.
"There is no work. We have been coming here for the past 20 days. I haven't been offered any work. Only one or two people are offered work. Others stay here hungry and thirsty. Faced with a whole host of problems, I have to meet all expenses of my family," he added.
Considering the situation, Mohammad Liaqat Adill, who is the President of All Afghanistan Federation of Trade Unions (AAFTU), also called the situation of labourers in the country 'critical' and said that unemployment and poverty in the country had reached a peak, The Frontier Post reported.
Despite the fact that the Taliban have unveiled a new caretaker cabinet in the country but even the government officials and NGO staffers have not yet received their monthly salaries mainly because the banking activities have not yet come back to normal.
Afghanistan is facing a major economic collapse. Prices for food and other essentials have also risen, even as most banks remain closed, and the United Nations (UN) has reported limited access to cash and possible food shortages, Human Rights Watch informed.
A few days back, UN agencies have also warned that "a humanitarian catastrophe looms" in Afghanistan and urged donor governments to "dig deep" to fund an emergency flash appeal.
The US and EU have also stated that they will continue providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.
