By Abbas Nazil
Afghanistan is facing an intensifying humanitarian crisis as millions of returnees struggle to rebuild their lives in a fragile economy compounded by climate change.
Since September 2023, more than four million Afghans have returned from Iran and Pakistan, including nearly 1.5 million in 2025 alone.
At the same time, almost 350,000 Afghans have been displaced within the first four months of the year due to conflict, economic collapse, and environmental stress.
This mass return has created immense challenges for Afghanistan’s already weak economy, where job opportunities are scarce and services remain overstretched.
Iran and Pakistan, long destinations for Afghan workers, expelled large numbers of migrants who had filled vital roles in industries such as agriculture, construction, and manufacturing.
Their absence has left labour gaps in those countries while returnees now confront uncertainty and unemployment back home.
Many face desperate conditions.
Maryam, a widow who returned after six years in Iran, now lives in a transit centre in Herat with her two sons.
She suffers from health problems but is most pained by seeing her teenage son abandon school to seek work.
Others like Fraidoon, a graduate unable to find a job, express frustration that migration may remain their only option.
The World Bank warns that Afghanistan’s job market is under increasing strain, with an additional 1.7 million young people expected to enter the workforce by 2030.
Without major investment in skills, entrepreneurship, and job creation, large numbers may attempt migration again.
The International Organization for Migration has provided training to nearly 3,000 people since 2024 and supported more than 2,600 businesses, generating almost 12,000 jobs, including opportunities for women.
Yet, these efforts remain insufficient compared with the scale of the crisis.
Returnees continue to face homelessness, restrictions on women’s rights, and lack of security, underscoring the urgent need for broader international support to stabilise lives and prevent renewed cycles of migration.
