Translated with AI
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has temporarily suspended the operation of cash assistance centers for returning refugees in four Afghan provinces due to Taliban* restrictions on women's employment. This was reported by Amu TV, citing humanitarian sources.
According to media reports, financial aid distribution centers in Nangarhar, Kandahar, Kabul, and Herat have been closed since September 9. The decision was made in response to measures banning women from working for UN agencies and visiting the offices of international organizations.
UNHCR noted that restrictive regulations hinder the provision of humanitarian assistance "in a safe, respectful, and equitable manner not only for women and girls, but for all returnees." Agency representatives emphasized that women returning from Pakistan and Iran can only receive assistance through female staff, a prerequisite for upholding cultural and social norms.
The organization confirmed that it is in talks with Taliban representatives* to restore the centers' operations, but no specific timeframe for resuming payments has yet been announced. However, other UNHCR activities in Afghanistan continue.
According to the UN, 23.7 million Afghans—more than half the country's population—will need humanitarian assistance by 2025. The situation is exacerbated by the mass deportation of hundreds of thousands of migrants from Pakistan and Iran in recent months. The organization emphasizes that cash benefits are one of the most effective forms of support, and it is extremely difficult to replace them with other forms of assistance.
As reported, the ban on women visiting UN offices was imposed on September 7 by the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, following orders from the movement's supreme leader. Security guards stopped allowing female staff members to enter, and those inside the buildings were asked to leave. Previously, in April 2023, the Taliban ordered all female UN staff to cease work, to which the organization had already stated at the time that it was impossible to provide humanitarian aid without the participation of women.
*The Taliban movement is recognized as a terrorist organization and is banned in a number of countries.
