Some stallholders in Herat province claim that the Taliban are extorting and overtaxing them. These stallholders emphasize that the Taliban, without adhering to regulations and taxation requirements, have imposed heavy taxes on business owners. According to them, the Taliban collect exorbitant fees from business owners under the guise of shop and municipal land rents.
Several business owners and stallholders in the Tarraqi Park area of Herat City report that due to the increased rents imposed by the Taliban-controlled municipality, they have ceased their businesses. They state that a significant number of stallholders who have continued their work out of necessity are struggling with the extortion and heavy taxation imposed by this group.
These stallholders express concern about the Taliban’s oppressive trade policies and state that if the current situation continues, they will be forced to abandon small businesses. According to these stallholders, the Taliban have imposed heavy rents on them without considering the circumstances, and in the absence of markets and sales, they are unable to make any profit to pay these fees to the group.
Saeed runs a stall in Herat’s Tarraqi Park area, selling burgers. He has been supporting his family through his stall for 12 years. Mr. Saeed says that the Taliban have made conditions difficult for him, and despite working day and night, he cannot afford the rent for his stall. Speaking to the Hasht-e Subh Daily, he says, “God is my witness, they have made our lives very difficult. I used to pay a monthly rent of 1,500 Afghanis for this stall for 12 years, but for the past five months, the Taliban have been charging me 5,500 Afghanis. There are no customers, no business. If I had another option, I wouldn’t even open the stall.”
Saeed, with a heart full of sorrow and regret, says that instead of encouraging and supporting the stallholders, the Taliban have burdened him and his colleagues with heavy loads. According to him, the complaints of stallholders to the municipality and other local Taliban authorities in Herat have yielded no results.
This comes as the lack of business opportunities and the increase in stall rents by the Taliban-controlled municipality in Herat have led to the closure of dozens of stalls and the abandonment of many livelihoods.
Ramin is another street worker who says that the Taliban have tripled the rent for his stall. He emphasizes that under the current circumstances, he cannot afford the stall rent. He states that he is forced to sell his belongings and leave the country. Mr. Ramin adds, “Out of a hundred stalls in this area, fifty to sixty have closed. These stalls couldn’t meet the Taliban’s rent demands. It’s impossible to make a living with these conditions. My stall rent was three thousand Afghanis, but now it has become ten thousand and five hundred Afghanis monthly.”
He underscores that he cannot cover this rent with “sandwiches, samosas, and bolani” sales. Ramin considers the Taliban’s actions as clear oppression of the stallholders and emphasizes that he has decided to sell all his belongings and leave Afghanistan.
However, some business owners claim that the Taliban will soon impose even heavier rents on stallholders based on per square meter. They cite information from the Taliban within the Herat municipality, stating that they plan to charge 400 Afghanis per square meter soon.
These street workers emphasize that if the Taliban’s decision is implemented, it will be the “grave” of their businesses, and they will be forced to abandon them. According to them, over two years have passed since this group’s rule in Afghanistan, and despite the Taliban’s repeated promises to strengthen and grow the economy, people are becoming poorer every day, while members of this group are getting wealthier.
Many Herat residents explicitly state that the increase in corruption, lack of transparency and accountability, the Taliban’s access to foreign aid, and the collection of people’s money and property under the names of tithes and alms have made the members of this group wealthier day by day.
Previously, the Taliban had claimed multiple times that they had eradicated administrative and financial corruption in government agencies and stabilized the economic situation. However, humanitarian organizations have warned about the dire human conditions and the expansion of a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan under Taliban control. Recently, two United Nations agencies have issued warnings about worsening food insecurity in Afghanistan. The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in a joint report, stated that Afghanistan is among eight countries facing food insecurity.
