KABUL: For 50-year-old Hajji Mohammad, the outgoing year was a good one, with peace returning to war-torn Afghanistan. However, he found it hard to support his family, despite traveling from the eastern Wardak province to the capital Kabul to earn his living.
“I have no funds to support my family and even I am not able to buy something to eat,” said Mohammad.
With the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August, the war ended and peace returned. Mohammad said it is “a new phenomenon in my life,” as the prolonged war had claimed several lives from his family, including his children.
However, the economic situation has worsened due to the US sanctions.
“The matter of concern is that the economic situation is worse,” said Mohammad, who can hardly find a job with regular income in Kabul.
“My utmost demand is to have a peaceful life, a regular income and something to eat in a peaceful environment,” he said, expressing hope that the caretaker government could provide more jobs, overcome the economic woes and “put on track everything” next year.
Following the US military pullout from Afghanistan and the Taliban’s takeover of the country, Washington reportedly has frozen more than 9 billion US dollars of Afghanistan’s central bank, leaving the new rulers in the doldrums.
Soaring prices and rising inflations are triggering great concerns, with food and other life-saving aid running out.
The United States has shut down its embassy in Kabul, urging allies to avoid establishing diplomatic relations with the interim government, unless the Taliban meets Washington’s demands.
Taxi driver Mohammad Ramin seems luckier to have a job, but the prices of basic needs soar much quicker than his earnings, making his life no easier.
“The outcome of this year for me is economic hardship. I am working from dawn to dusk and earn some 600 Afghani (5.8 dollars), which is not enough to support my family,” he said.
“I am hopeful that next year would be a year of peace, tranquility and economic growth in Afghanistan,” Ramin said.
