אפגניסטן: חלקן של נשים בשוק העבודה צונח ל-5% תחת הטליבאן

Tuesday 18 August 2026 - 13:17

חמש שנים לאחר חזרת הטליבאן לשלטון, הגישה של נשים אפגניות לשוק העבודה הגיעה לרמה הנמוכה ביותר בהיסטוריה. לפי הנתונים האחרונים של ארגון העבודה הבינלאומי (ILO), השתתפות הנשים בכוח העבודה מהווה כיום רק 5.1% בשנת 2026, לעומת 16.5% בשנת 2020, לפני חזרת הטליבאן לשלטון.

הירידה הדרסטית הזו ממחישה את היקף המגבלות שהוטלו על נשים אפגניות בתחומי החינוך והעבודה. עבור ה-ILO, ההדרה הזו מהווה כיום אחת מהאחריות העיקריות להתפתחות הכלכלית של המדינה.

כלכלה חסרה חלק נרחב מאוכלוסייתה

ה deteriorating employment of women contrasts with the rapid evolution of the male labor market, which has seen rapid growth. For Tite Habiyakare, the chief coordinator and head of the ILO office for Afghanistan, the country cannot hope to build a solid labor market while keeping such a large part of its population excluded from economic activity.

Therefore, the restrictions on women do not only produce social consequences. They also affect the growth potential of a country facing significant demographic pressure and major economic needs.

The ILO estimates that total employment in Afghanistan has increased by 14% since its particularly low level in 2022, reaching about 8.5 million people in 2026. However, this improvement remains insufficient to absorb the rapid population increase.

ההדרה דוחפת נשים אפגניות ליזמות

Nevertheless, a paradox appears in the figures: while women are increasingly distanced from many salaried jobs, the number of businesses led by Afghan women has increased tenfold since the arrival of the Taliban, according to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

This progress does not necessarily reflect an improvement in their economic situation. It is explained in part by the fact that entrepreneurship is one of the few remaining opportunities accessible to some women to generate income when the doors to many professions are closed to them.

This constrained female economy thus testifies to significant adaptability, but also to the limits imposed on Afghan women in their professional lives.

אפגניסטן בין המדינות המגבילות ביותר לעבודה נשית

With only 5.1% female participation in the labor market, Afghanistan now shows one of the lowest levels in the world. According to the ILO, only Yemen presents a more unfavorable situation.

The decrease in female employment occurs as the country must also face the massive return of Afghans from neighboring countries. Arrivals from Pakistan in particular increase the pressure on an already fragile labor market and limited economic resources.

The combination of these factors places the Afghan authorities in front of a major challenge: to create enough activity for a growing population while maintaining restrictions that prevent a considerable part of this population from fully participating in the economy.

אתגר כלכלי כמו גם חברתי

The figures from the ILO thus paint a picture of a deeply unbalanced labor market. The overall employment growth is not enough to mask the spectacular decline in women's participation.

For international organizations, their exclusion represents a sustainable economic cost. In a country where the needs for jobs and income remain considerable, the absence of millions of women from entire sectors of professional activity mechanically reduces the productive capacities of the economy.

Five years after the return of the Taliban, the issue of female employment thus appears as one of the most visible markers of Afghanistan's economic and social transformation.