Hundreds of men, some on crutches, all wearing tattered clothing, gather shortly before dawn at major intersections throughout Kabul and other Afghan cities. Displaying primitive tools such as a level or a trowel, they seek labor that is often backbreaking, always temporary and will earn just a few Afghanis for a day’s work.
Employers circle the intersections, eyeing the crowds. Usually they are looking for one or two workers for minor construction tasks. Before they even stop, dozens of men swarm their vehicle, fighting with each other to get one of perhaps five or six jobs available that morning.
These men come and stand here all day for someone to come and hire them as workers. Most of them are not lucky enough to find work and those who find work earn just between 200 to 300 Afghanis per day.
The laid-off workers or job seekers, who are unable to find jobs, are filled with great disappointment and they worry how to put food on their table-clothes or pay their mortgage. It is really a matter of concern for people who lost their jobs through no fault of their own and are just trying to stay afloat.
Despite billions of dollars from abroad to develop this impoverished country since the U.S-led invasion toppled the Taliban regime in 2001, roughly 12 million people, or eight out of every 10 working-age Afghans are unskilled day laborers, according to an International Labor Organization report. Most land only temporary jobs.
A major challenge faced by Afghan’s economy today is one of providing opportunities for income generation to the fast-growing manpower. With the country’s population escalating rate, first priority is obviously job creation. However, the current political stagnation has led to a massive exodus of young people to cities and this has caused rapid urbanization in the country which, in turn, has created difficulties of its own. Moreover, Afghan refugees abound in camps, in foreign countries, to escape hunger and economic constraints.
Unemployment is a serious problem. Jobs are needed not just to provide livelihood to people and their families; they are also needed because people with nothing to do can form a huge reservoir of discontent. Joblessness robs a person of his self-esteem and he has no stake in socio-economic development having been denied the sense of ownership and economic empowerment that a secure job gives a person.
Although violence, terrorism and political unrest are the major reasons behind unemployment, nonetheless there also exist many other factors. For instance, in rural areas, work is also temporary — but it’s also seasonal and often illegal. Some of the biggest employers, opium-producing poppy farmers, provide tens of thousands of short-term jobs.
Every year, more than 400,000 young people enter the Afghan labor market – a number which is far beyond the labor market’s capacity to absorb young workers. Given Afghanistan’s high fertility rate of 5.1 children per woman and an on-going ‘youth bulge’, the pressure on the labor market can only be expected to increase.
The post-2014 withdrawal of international troops will undoubtedly create a high level of uncertainty among the national and international community, and a potential reduction in aid. The political stagnation has aggravated the problems and the Afghan presidential election was no more than a flash on the pan and the mouth-watering slogans of the presidential candidates seem to be on wane.
Ordinary workers depended heavily on construction, trucking and other sectors that saw boom times because of the presence of foreign troops and aid projects – and now there is coming bust, as soldiers withdraw and development budgets shrink and the foreign aids dwindle.
Insecurity also affects investors and cause unemployment. Increasing Taliban-led militancy, poor living condition particularly in the countryside, and the sway of warlords coupled with corruption and poppy cultivation have enabled militants to challenge government and exploit the situation for their benefit.
According to the officials at least 500,000 job opportunities will be required amid NATO troops’ withdrawal from the country and as the foreign aid tapers off that will have direct impact over the economy of Afghanistan.
The officials further believe that the jobs’ needs to be created within a year to combat growing unemployment. Some of the international organizations including local companies are making workers redundant as international aid money declines and foreign troops left Afghanistan.
The National government comes under severe criticism from the public and from the Afghan officials. As a result, Shekiba Hashimi, a female parliamentarian talked emotionally about the joblessness of the Afghan youths on Wednesday. She said that the government faces budget deficit and is unable to provide job opportunities for them yet injustice is the daily practice in our country. She warned that unemployment will force our youths to join Taliban militants.
Before the presidential election, Afghan people hoped that unemployment will end with the election; however their dream did not come true. Currently, the delay for determining members of cabinet has shattered the people’s hopes. Hence, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah and Mohammad Ashraf Ghani are urged by the people and by parliamentarians to break the deadline and determine the members of cabinet as soon as possible.
Furthermore, some economists are recommending agriculture as an option for job-seekers. “Agriculture is the backbone of the rural economy, and there are thousands of job opportunities in this sector if proper planning and execution are done.”
Investments so far have primarily been directed toward short-term projects, economists say. While they represent a step in the right direction, Afghanistan requires longer-term solutions to adequately address unemployment.