Afghans returning from Pakistan share their fears of an uncertain future
“Now we have nothing left.”
It has been three months since the Pakistani government announced that undocumented Afghans had to leave the country or face deportation. Since then, almost 500,000 Afghans have been forced to return to their homeland.
After so many years of conflict and economic crises, Afghanistan has little to offer. Those who have returned are facing many difficulties, such as the lack of shelter, food, winter clothes, and, most importantly, work opportunities.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is on the ground at the border crossings and in the other areas where people have settled. We spoke to a number of Afghans about the challenges they are facing.
“How will we manage the rent?”
Naseer Ahmad, a 25-year-old father of two girls, came back from Pakistan 20 days ago after living there for almost six years. He shares the rent of a house in Jalalabad with his brother and his brother-in-law's families. “Every day, three of us [men] go to the market but find no work. I would stay in my country [Afghanistan] if I could get a job that pays 100 AFN [around USD 1.44] a day and would never go abroad,” he says.
Upon arrival at the Torkham border crossing, Naseer Ahmad’s family received 8,000 AFN (around USD 115) as assistance. However, he had to spend 1,500 AFN to rent a vehicle and transport their belongings and used the remaining funds for medical expenses. “Now we have nothing left. My kids and I became sick. We went to the doctor and got some medicine. Now I owe 2,000 AFN to the doctor,” he says.
Naseer Ahmad is anxious about how to pay the rent for the house where he and his family are staying. He says: "We have to pay 5,500 AFN a month for the rent, but we have no money and no job. How will we manage the rent this month?" The house they are living in is draughty, and the doors and windows are mostly broken. Their lives will be very difficult in winter.
Naseer Ahmad with his daughter, Zakia.
Naseer Ahmad with his daughter, Zakia.
Zakia, three years old.
Zakia, three years old.
Sana and Awais are cousins.
Sana and Awais are cousins.
Sana.
Sana.
Sana, 8, Ali 22, and Rahman, 15 days old. Sana is Ali's niece.
Sana, 8, Ali 22, and Rahman, 15 days old. Sana is Ali's niece.
“I have no work here”
Ali used to work as a tuk-tuk driver and a battery repairer in Peshawar, Pakistan. He came back to Afghanistan with his family and his brothers' families 17 days ago. They all live together in a rented house now.
Ali says he has not been able to find a job in Afghanistan since he came back. "I have no work here. I am jobless. I look for a job every day, but I can't find anything," he says. "I know how to fix batteries, but I don't have the tools and equipment. I also don't have the money to buy them. They would cost around 400,000 AFN [around USD 5,700] [to set up a mechanic shop]."
Sana is Ali's 8-year-old niece who came back from Pakistan with her family at the same time. Sana was a third-grade student, and she wants to continue her education in Afghanistan. She says: "I want to be a doctor or engineer in the future. I ask the world to help all the returned students go to school."
“It took us three days to get here”
Niazmina, 25, is one of the many Afghan women who have returned to their country after living in Pakistan for almost two years. She and her family left Afghanistan because her brother had no job and was in debt. They hoped to find work and pay off their creditors in Pakistan.
Niazmina says that her family had a better life in Pakistan. Her brother had a job and could support them. "We have nothing to do here in Afghanistan. There is no work," she says.
Along the way, Niazmina and her family realised that their return was not as smooth as they had expected. They had to borrow money and share a truck with seven other families to transport their belongings from Pakistan to the Torkham border. "It took us three days to get here. We were very tired and hungry. We could not rest or sleep on the way," she says.
Niazmina's story is not unique. Hundreds of female-headed households have returned from Pakistan in the past few weeks, facing similar challenges and uncertainties. They need urgent support and protection to rebuild their lives and reintegrate into their communities.
The international community must step up
The Afghan people we interviewed all need the same things. Winter is here, and they ask the international community to help all those who are coming back to Afghanistan to get through a difficult winter. They ask for shelter, food, clothes, fuel, and other necessities.
How NRC is helping people who have returned
NRC has teams of legal specialists providing information, counselling, and legal assistance to returning Afghans on a wide range of legal matters, including:
- housing, land, and property
- legal identity documentation
- employment law and procedure
- access to essential services
We are also supporting people who have returned with information through community centres in areas of return, as well as winterisation, protection monitoring and cash for rent programmes.
Since the start of the crisis, our teams have reached over 90,000 Afghans who have returned from Pakistan. However, those returning to Afghanistan need much more than short-term humanitarian assistance. They need longer-term solutions that will enable them to survive, such as employment opportunities and access to education.
We thank EU Humanitarian Aid (ECHO), the US Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM), the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA), USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), and the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund (AHF) for their generous contribution to our activities at the border and in areas of return.
Read more about our work in Afghanistan
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