The share of women in Afghanistan's labor market has falled to around one worker in 20 in the five years since the Taliban returned to power, according to a report published by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Tuesday.
uncertain
Taliban → fall → Tuesday
"Afghanistan is estimated to have the second lowest female labor force participation rate worldwide, at only 5.1% in 2026, against the backdrop of severe restrictions in women's access to education and employment," the ILO wrote.
asserted
ILO → estimate → education
It called for urgent steps to counter women's "severe exclusion," also saying this was essential to buttress the Afghan economy's resilience more generally.
asserted
this → call → resilience
The Taliban rapidly returned to power in August 2021 amid a pullout by the US and other NATO forces, ending a 20-year period when women enjoyed comparatively improved economic and educational liberty after years of hardline Islamist rule.
asserted
women → return → rule
What did the ILO say about women in Afghanistan's labor market?
asserted
ILO → say → market
The UN organization warned of "significant demographic and institutional changes" in the labor market since 2021, many of them disadvantaging women.
-
asserted
many → warn → women
Female labor force participation had dipped from 16.5% in 2020 to 5.1% in 2026
-
asserted
participation → dip → 2026
Young women "NEETs" — people "not in education, employment or training" — represented 84% of the cohort, compared to 76% in 2020 and 68% in 2019
-
asserted
women → represent → 2019
Among young men, the NEET figure was below 30%, and falling compared to the recent high-point of the COVID pandemic in 2020
-
asserted
figure → fall → 2020
The UN's Development Agency meanwhile said one rare boom area was businesses owned by women
-
asserted
area → say → women
These had increased in prevalence roughly tenfold, albeit precisely because other employment options were so scarce
"
asserted
options → increase → prevalence
Afghanistan cannot build a resilient labor market while such a large share of its population remains excluded from economic activity," said Tite Habiyakare, senior coordinator and head of the ILO office for Afghanistan.
asserted
Habiyakare → build → Afghanistan
What did the ILO say about Afghanistan's economy more generally?
asserted
ILO → say → economy
The report said that Afghanistan's labor market remained "under considerable pressure" five years after the Taliban takeover, having only moderately recovered from the crash of 2021.
asserted
market → say → 2021
Afghanistan's GDP tumbled by around 15% when the Taliban returned amid the COVID pandemic and western troops and funds flowed out.
asserted
troops → tumble → pandemic
It remained deep in negative territory in 2022 and had just barely clawed its way into positive growth territory since, falling well short of returning to its pre-Taliban levels.
asserted
It → remain → levels
Employment numbers have started to rise in absolute terms, but not fast enough to keep up with population growth — either domestic or as a result of emigrant returns — meaning the share of people in work is flatlining at just under one-third of the population.
asserted
share → start → population
The paper also called for increased investment in representative labor force data-gathering, warning that its data was reliant on modeling estimates that "are subject to considerable uncertainty and should be interpreted with appropriate caution.
asserted
that → call → caution
"
How are external factors like the war in Iran and migrant returns impacting the situation?
asserted
factors → impact → situation
Large-scale returns of emigrants, particularly from Iran and Pakistan, have become "one of the defining labor market challenges facing Afghanistan," the report said.
asserted
report → become → Afghanistan
More than 6 million Afghans returned from Iran and Pakistan between 2023 and the end of May this year, with the surge driven "by a combination of policy, economic and security factors."
The report noted World Bank projections suggesting that this could halve the influence of remittance inflows into the Afghan economy, from around 4% of GDP in 2020 to around 2% of economic output by 2025.
uncertain
this → return → 2025
"Since February 2026, the Middle East crisis has added further uncertainty for Afghans residing in Iran, alongside the continued implementation of returns policies," the ILO said.
asserted
ILO → add → policies
Finally, the ILO warned that the war in Iran posed additional risks for Afghanistan — in terms of general inflation, food and fuel prices, trade and transport disruptions, and increased potential returns from Iran.
asserted
war → warn → Iran
Around 70% of workers, partiularly less skilled ones, were at least moderately exposed to factors relevant to the crisis like energy prices, the report found, with roughly 30% facing only slight exposure.
asserted
% → expose → exposure
It noted a steep rise in inflation figures in the past 12 months, rising from less than 1% in May 2025 to around 8% by May 2026, and warned that such increases "disproportionately affect poorer households and reduce real earnings, particularly among informal workers."
If you rely on our team for trusted reporting, please take a moment to select us as your Preferred Source on Google, so you'll always see our verified news first.
uncertain
you → note → news
The Aporia
