RASC News Agency: A new report by the World Food Programme (WFP) reveals that Afghanistan’s employment and income crisis continues to deepen, with day laborers now finding work for less than two days per week on average a development that is further eroding the purchasing power of thousands of vulnerable households across the country.
According to the report, unskilled laborers secured an average of only 1.9 days of work during the past week, a figure that reflects a significant decline compared with both last year and the three-year average. Meanwhile, the average daily wage was recorded at approximately 309 Kabuli rupees, an income level that remains insufficient to meet the basic needs of many families.
The WFP noted that although Afghanistani markets are not currently experiencing severe shortages of essential commodities and relative stability in the exchange rate has helped contain inflationary pressures, millions of citizens continue to struggle to afford basic necessities. Rising prices of key food staples including rice, wheat, flour, and sugar compared with the previous year have placed additional strain on low-income households already facing severe economic hardship.
The agency also reported a sharp increase in the cost of agricultural inputs, particularly chemical fertilizers, warning that the trend could contribute to higher food prices in the coming months and further weaken food security across the country.
The findings underscore the persistent economic distress facing Afghanistan, where millions of people rely on casual daily labor as their primary source of income. With employment opportunities increasingly scarce, many families are being forced to reduce food consumption, incur debt, or adopt other negative coping mechanisms to survive.
Economic analysts argue that the continued absence of an effective employment-generation strategy, declining investment, limited private-sector activity, and widespread economic restrictions under Taliban rule are among the principal factors driving persistent poverty and shrinking income opportunities throughout the country.
Critics further contend that the Taliban administration has failed to establish the conditions necessary for sustainable economic recovery. Ongoing international isolation, restrictions affecting key sectors of society, uncertainty surrounding governance, and the lack of investor confidence have collectively contributed to a stagnant economic environment in which job creation remains severely constrained.
As Afghanistan enters another year of economic uncertainty, humanitarian organizations warn that declining household incomes, rising living costs, and fragile labor market conditions are creating a cycle of vulnerability that threatens to push even greater numbers of Afghanistani families into poverty, food insecurity, and long-term dependence on humanitarian assistance.
