Female Participation in the Humanitarian Action in Afghanistan (September 2022) [EN/Dari/PS]

Executive Summary

This report shows how participation in the humanitarian response has changed for national female staff – in virtually all aspects – since the takeover by the Taliban De-facto Authorities (DfA) in August 2021. Already one of the hardest places in the world for women to work, their ability to engage safely, meaningfully and comprehensively in humanitarian action has become even more challenging over the past 12 months.
Amid a growing set of restrictions curtailing their basic rights and freedoms, female humanitarian workers face harassment, intimidation and mistreatment on a daily basis – from the moment they leave their homes, to the point they return. This includes during their commute to and from the office, when meeting – if they are allowed – with the DfA, to their experiences in the workplace.

During the consultations with female humanitarian workers, they explained that the varied approach taken to the application of the decrees and directives targeting women – especially the requirement that they be accompanied by a male relative or chaperone (mahram) – leaves them open to the whims of individuals, creating an uncertain and unsafe environment for them when travelling, especially at checkpoints. Both female and male staff spoke of instances of verbal abuse and threatening behaviour by local officials manning checkpoints, including for married couples, and extending at times to physical violence.

The situation is widespread, affecting women in all corners of the country, although regional variations do exist. Women spoke in particular of feeling hopeless, left behind and forgotten, including by the international community. Men spoke of their female colleagues now posing something of a liability for organizations which made it less likely for them to be employed and, if hired, more likely to be in junior or non-programmatic positions.
Without immediate and decisive action taken on a range of fronts, there is a risk that Afghan women will find it even harder to participate in humanitarian action in Afghanistan, with potentially devastating consequences for female beneficiaries who depend on their involvement to be able to access life-saving assistance and services.

Key findings include:

■ From 171 districts across Afghanistan, the ability of women to participate in humanitarian action was found to be low and lower in 88 districts (51 per cent) and high and higher in only 68 (40 per cent).

■ Nuristan, Badghis and Kunduz provinces were identified as having the worst access for female humanitarian workers, compared to Bamyan, Herat, Jawzjan and Samangan provinces which were identified as having the best.

■ The single-biggest factor affecting national female humanitarian worker’s ability to engage in the response is what was referred to in one consultation as the ‘mahram mushkila’ – a reference to the decree issued by the de-facto authorities in December 2021 that women must be accompanied by a male guardian or relative when travelling beyond 45 miles (72km).

■ The second most pertinent factor affecting national female humanitarian workers is the inconsistent implementation of the different decrees and directives and the variation in DfA behaviour and treatment towards them.

■ The third relates to the strong sentiment – expressed by female and male national staff alike – that female humanitarian workers have been increasingly deprioritized or marginalized in the workplace since last August.

■ The hijab decree, while a source of physical discomfort for all, was not deemed to have drastically altered female staff's ability to engage in the humanitarian response.

To address the issues affecting female participation in the humanitarian response, the UN and humanitarian organizations, DfA and Member States and donors will need to adjust existing policies and practices.

It is urged that:

■ The DfA acknowledges the important and unique role that national female staff play in the humanitarian response, respect it, and therefore refrain from introducing measures or impediments that may limit, compromise or undermine that involvement.

■ Member States and donors continue to advocate with the DfA for the full, meaningful and safe inclusion of women in the humanitarian response; hold their partners accountable to the commitments they have made regarding female national humanitarian workers; and support funding decisions which encourage and enable concrete improvements in their lives and avoid positioning which may hamper that.

■ The UN leadership and humanitarian organizations develop guidelines on how to cooperate with the DfA on the matter of female participation in the humanitarian response; strengthen reporting systems for female national staff to register concerns about their working environment; increase or create dedicated funding opportunities for women’s groups and humanitarian and protection programmes targeting women and girls; consider developing a set of training modules for the DfA which covers a range of issues from basic literacy to education and sensitization that would facilitate the improved participation of female staff in the humanitarian response, including, for example, their movement across checkpoints; and use temporary special measures which enable more national female staff to be recruited.