Afghanistan: Women carpet weavers face challenges in Badakhshan

"We don't have a good place for washing carpets and when they are transferred to Kunduz province it costs us a lot," said Nadia, a carpet weaver.

Nearly fifty women and girls weave carpets in the city of Faizabad and these women said that the lack of a carpet processing center has made their work difficult, reported Tolo News.

"We face challenges and we lack some materials," said Fawzia, a carpet weaver.

"We don't have a carpet processing market and don't have a specific place to work there," said Farzana, a carpet weaver.

Officials of the carpet weaver's union in Badakhshan said that currently, four thousand women are busy with carpet weaving in this province, reported Tolo News.

"Four thousand women are busy with carpet weaving, they work with us for two years and after that, they graduate and we give them a certificate," said Abdul Ali, the head of the carpet weavers union in Badakhshan.

"When women report their products to us, we are ready and have a plan for them," said Samruldden Rahmani, head of the industrial park in Badakhshan.

According to officials of the industry and commerce department in Badakhshan, currently, 10 carpet weaving workshops are active in Badakhshan, reported Tolo News.

The Taliban have imposed many restrictions on Afghan women after coming to power.

Taliban banned women from attending university last December, nine months after the Islamist group barred girls from returning to secondary schools amid a brutal crackdown on women's rights since it seized power in 2021.

Grades 7-12 have been closed for girls and young women for more than 530 days, reported Tolo News.

Taliban also announced a ban on female NGO workers - prompting multiple major foreign aid groups to suspend their operations in the country.

The Taliban's return to power preceded a deepening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, worsening issues that had long plagued the country. (ANI)