HERAT -- A private company in Herat province that produces thread has created jobs for hundreds of women with support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Almost 2,500 women are busy working in Hussaini and Qanbari's 24 facilities across Herat city to process wool for rugs.
The IOM provides the company with materials, solar energy and business consultation, said Hasan Hussaini, the owner of the company.
It also pays a 6,000 AFN ($71) monthly stipend to the company's employees, Hussaini said.
![Women produce threads at the Hussaini and Qanbari factory in Herat August 7. [Omar/Salaam Times]](/cnmi_st/images/2023/08/21/43577-w_2-739_416.webp)
Women produce threads at the Hussaini and Qanbari factory in Herat August 7. [Omar/Salaam Times]
The company pays the workers 60 AFN ($0.71) for each kilogram of thread.
"This financial assistance has helped hundreds of families fight hunger and extreme poverty," added Hussaini.
"All these women who work at our company are the breadwinners of their families," he added. The women "are desperate to work outside their homes and earn a living for their family."
The company produces up to four tons of thread a day. A portion of the thread is used to make traditional Afghan rugs, while another is exported to other countries.
Feroza, 40, a worker who is the breadwinner for a family of nine, said she is happy that she can work outside her home and can earn a living for her family.
"My husband is a laborer who everyday goes to the city for work, but he can't find work," she said. "Therefore, I have to work outside my home so that I can protect my children from hunger."
"This work is very important for my family," added Feroza. "I use the salary I get here to put my kids through school, and buy them food, clothes and stationery."
Support for families
Kimia, 50, the breadwinner for her family of seven, said that her husband is too old to work.
"My family is poor, and we really need this work," she said. "I know I have become older and working isn't easy for me, but because of the poverty we face, I have to work."
"Despite restrictions on women's work, Afghan women bravely work so that they can shield their families from poverty," she added.
"Poverty has made us work outside our homes," Kimia said, adding that the assistance from IOM and the salary she receives from the company fulfill the economic needs of her family.
Zahra, 47, another worker, said that she uses the money she earns to send her son to university so that he can build his and his family's future.
"We are a family of six, and my husband has passed away," she said. "My son is 21 years old and goes to university. Currently, I'm the only breadwinner of my family, and I can earn enough to pay for our life expenses."
"I'm happy that work is available for women like me in such a difficult time, and we're able to work outside the home," she added.
"If there are job opportunities, most women would like to work so that they can help save their families from poverty."
Poverty reduction
Zakia, 36, who has been working at the threading company for two months, has five children and a sick husband.
Her economic problems have decreased since she started working at the company, she said.
"I spend the money I receive for my work at this company on providing food and clothes for my children," said Zakia. "Previously when I was unemployed, I had many problems, and I had to borrow flour and/or bread from my neighbors."
"I need this work very much, and if I don't work, I can't even afford a loaf of bread," she added.
"Because of my work, my family has been protected from hunger. I will continue to work outside the home so that I make sure we don't stay hungry."
Sakina, 28, said she must work outside her home and earn money so that her three children don't go hungry.
"My husband is a laborer, but he can find work only once or twice a month," she said. "He doesn't earn even 1,000 AFN ($12) a month, so I also decided to work alongside him."
"In this bad economy, unemployment has increased," she added.
"Most men have lost their jobs; therefore, women also need to work. If job opportunities become available for women, they will also want to work and contribute to their family's income."
Sakina said restrictions on women's work at non-governmental organizations and at government agencies are one of the reasons behind increasing poverty in Afghanistan.
It is a miracle that women are given such a job opportunity in the Taliban regime, which is made up of oppression. The international community should not leave Afghan women unemployed like today. The government should be pressured to create job opportunities for women and open girls' schools.
Reply11 Comment
Poverty has forced families to sell their children. Poverty and unemployment are spreading and the Taliban has no plan and solution to reduce poverty. The Taliban are celebrating the anniversary of their domination of Afghanistan while more than 70% of the people live in the poverty line and many families have to make a difficult decision to feed their children so that one of their children is sold to feed the rest. Meanwhile, girls are sold earlier and early marriages have become more prosperous than before. The media can no longer report freely as it used to, and [the journalists] are beaten from time to time and access to information is limited. The new report of the Reporters Without Borders organization shows that until August 15, 2021, Afghanistan had 547 media outlets, but 219 media outlets have been shut in the last year. According to this organization, a total of 7098 journalists are no longer working, and 54.52% of these journalists are men. According to this organization, female journalists are more affected by this situation and 76.19% of them have lost their jobs.
Reply11 Comment
With the new changes in the world, especially the war in Ukraine, the international community has left the fate of the poor people of Afghanistan in the hands of the radicalism of a group that has been accustomed to war and violence for 25 years and is alien to peace, tolerance and citizenship rights. The group that took power in Afghanistan as a result of a conspiracy is not bound by any principles of citizenship and human rights. This illegitimate group implements new decrees and orders from time to time to restrict citizenship rights and the right to access information. This group does not believe in peace and does not respect the rights of citizens. They consider peace not mutual acceptance but an unconditional surrender of their opponents and does not accept referendums and elections in any way. A year before, when the republic was ruling in Afghanistan, participation of women in all levels of governance, parliament, judiciary, politics, economy, society, education, health and other sectors were considered clear examples of Afghanistan's progress and maintaining these achievements and the presence of women. In the peace negotiations with the Taliban group in Qatar, female representatives were also negotiators and they were negotiating with the Taliban on human rights, women's rights and maintaining the achievements of the last 20 years, but one year after the fall of the republic by the Taliban, the women of this country were deprived of the smallest and most basic rights
ReplyI agree with some of these statements and disagree with others. It is a fact that women are deprived of the right to education and freedom of speech in addition to work, this is oppression of Afghan women and this is true, but Taliban's taking over of power was a necessary thing that had to be done, because the republic was so full of injustice and all kinds of corruption that Taliban had to come and clean up that mess. I am against some of Taliban's acts such as death sentences, but some of his actions are commendable. Such as returning captured lands, starting a number of projects that the republic could not implement due to fear of the warlords, and others....
Reply11 Comment
Poverty and unemployment, on one hand, strict and inhumane restrictions of the Taliban on the other hand, are factors that have practically isolated women. Currently, there are no women in the Taliban government's cabinet, government offices, and in communities across Afghanistan. In fact, half of the Afghan society has been removed from the scene. There is no news of freedom of speech and freedom of the media. The few female journalists who remained in the media are forced to appear in the media wearing masks. The Taliban have considered any criticism against them as a crime and have suppressed, humiliated, tortured and imprisoned any critic. The international community has not taken any practical action on the inhumane situation that the Afghan women are facing with and has only expressed regret for the challenges faced by women. In a society where poverty and unemployment are rampant, the psychological security of the society has been disrupted and the hope for the future is close to zero. The girls who missed out on education and the women who lost their works are the first victims of this situation. The Taliban, which is an ideological group, and does not respect the values of human rights, after coming to power, abolished the Afghan Human Rights Commission and by legalizing discrimination against women, it has effectively blocked women's participation in the society. The authoritarian and dictator ruling group, which lacks domestic and international legitimacy and cam
Reply11 Comment
Women's rights after the fall of the republic in Afghanistan: After the domination of Taliban in Afghanistan, the situation of human rights in general and the situation of women in particular changed. The Taliban, which is itself a radical Islamic group, strongly opposes the presence of women in the government offices and in the society. This extremist group, which took over Kabul after the departure of President Ashraf Ghani, dissolved the Ministry of Women and turned it into the Ministry of Enjoining good and Forbidding evil. It wasn't long before as the leader of this radical group issued an order against women, in which he informed about the mandatory hijab for women, and that if the women do not comply with this order, the women and later the eldest man of the family will be punished. The Taliban's strict laws against women caused women to be deprived of their basic and human rights, girls could no longer go to school, women were denied the right to work alongside men, and women's presence in the society was reduced. The brave women of Afghanistan took to the streets many times and chanted the slogan of freedom, education and work, but each time they were repressed, tortured, humiliated and sent to prison by Taliban gunmen, and forced confessions were taken from women in prison. In fact, women in Afghanistan have been taken hostage by the Taliban, if every attempt by the Taliban group to get their autocratic, ethnic, and religious government recognized by the internationa
Reply11 Comment
While men and women in Afghanistan are under severe mental pressure, a bastard group called the Taliban is ruling in this land, and every day, instead of providing work and food to the people, they impose new restrictions. This bastard group is fully ready for their master's secret deals, and every moment, as their master (America) orders, they implement it; they don't care about their nation or country. Recently, the Minister of the Taliban's Ministry of Brutality (Enjoining good and forbidding evil), Sheikh Muhammad Khalid Hanafi, has announced a ban on women visiting Band-e-Amir, Bamyan. He said that the reason for this decision is the non-observance of hijab by women. May you suffer the wrath of God! Whatever is done is done by your fighters; every day, without marrying a woman/girl, they fuck them. Your own Taliban fighters make the immodesty. Instead of watching the documentaries and videos of your men, you disgrace the modest and respectful women, and you do not let them go anywhere. Band-e-Amir was named a national park in 2009, which has attracted many domestic and foreign tourists recently, but the donkey-wise Taliban do not know that they can get full benefits from tourists. For example, foreign tourists come and spend the night in a hotel, and the profit goes to the pockets of Afghans; they buy fruit, and the profit goes to the pockets of Afghans; they buy clothes, and the profit goes to the pockets of Afghans... This is a way of income, but what is the Taliban doi
Reply11 Comment
This is a good news for the women of Herat as in this difficult situation and unemployment, a field of work was created for them to work. Most of the poor women are the breadwinners of their families and the government bans for women are increasing day by day. Women's job opportunities are very little. In this situation, such news is very pleasant for the women because women in Afghanistan have a lot of problems.
Reply11 Comment
Such news regarding the women pleases one's heart. May God increase the number of such happy news. Women in Afghanistan are the breadwinners of their families, and if they are not provided with work, it is obvious that they will face many problems. Women, who are the only breadwinners of their families, are facing severe problems in this situation. Instead of creating job opportunities for the people, the government puts restrictions on women from working every day and puts a lot of pressure on this oppressed group so that they are forced to leave their homeland. This is clearly an injustice against women and it will be very difficult to compensate for it.
Reply11 Comment
This is something valuable in this situation. It will be good if such a helping hand is extended to the poor people in each area. On the one hand, they will get money; on the other, they will get mentally and physically busy. Joblessness has caused psychological issues for many people. I welcome the beginning of such works.
Reply11 Comment
Providing women with job opportunities is an important and key issue all around the world. Even if one woman is provided with a job opportunity in these difficult conditions, it is something good. Afghan women are struggling women. They do their work even if they have basic facilities. Today, Afghan women are dealing with severe economic problems. Every woman is responsible for her family. If this kind of opportunity is not provided to them, they may suffer from many other diseases, which will cause losses for society.
Reply11 Comment