Afghans fear weakening book culture in country
Apr 24, 2023
Kabul [Afghanistan], April 24 : Afghans on World Book Day said they fear the weakening of book culture in the country. They said economic challenges and the use of the Internet by youth are the reasons they are no longer interested in studying, Afghanistan-based Khaama Press reported.
Ahmad, a book reader, said: "People have the most interest in social media and do not have an interest in studying books, and because of economics, most citizens are illiterate."
"In Afghanistan, studying is not important for people, and we call on the Islamic Emirate to provide opportunities for people to study," said Hameed, another book reader, as quoted by Khaama Press.
Some booksellers said that the book sales market is also facing stagnation.
Mukhtar, a bookseller, said: "In Afghanistan, the culture of book reading is at its lowest level, so we expect the Islamic Emirate and our people to pay attention to books and the culture of reading."
Some Kabul residents called on the Islamic Emirate to do something to develop the reading culture.
"We ask the Islamic Emirate to create libraries and bring books; without study, we cannot progress," said Mohammad Azmari, a Kabul resident, according to Khaama Press.
"Book studying is a good thing, and we should try to study," said Ahmad Zubir, another resident.
World Book Day is an annual event celebrated on April 23, and this day is named by UNESCO.
Tolo News recently reported that poverty and high rates of unemployment in Afghanistan under the Taliban rule have been pushing the natives to flee the country and move abroad in order to find jobs for survival.
The country's citizens said that they are forced to migrate to find jobs abroad to feed their families, illegally. Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the humanitarian crisis in the country has increased manifold. People are forced to live miserably under strict restrictions under the Taliban.
Lamenting over the poor situation of the country and its economic slump, a resident of Herat, Abdul Khaliq said, "I have been deported 16 times since 1391 (solar year) up to now... we are vulnerable and struggling with problems and we need to go out."
