Men in Afghanistan have been selling their children to survive poverty under the Taliban, a report from the country has revealed. The Taliban has taken over the country since the US withdrew its troops back in 2021. Since then, the Taliban offensive reestablished the Islamic Emirate, bringing Afghanistan back under their rule. The group intensified their crackdown on human rights, especially against females. The collapse of the economy almost entirely dependent on foreign aid pushed over 90% of the population into poverty and caused a near-total degradation of the local economy.
The country is now facing record levels of hunger, with 4.7 million – more than a tenth of Afghanistan’s population – estimated to be one step away from famine. One resident of the badly-affected province Ghor, Abdul Rashid Azimi, told the BBC about his plans about his seven-year-old twins Roqia and Rohila.
“I’m willing to sell my daughters,” he said. “I’m poor, in debt and helpless. I come home from work with parched lips, hungry, thirsty, distressed and confused. My children come to me saying ‘Baba, give us some bread’. But what can I give? Where is the work?”
He added: “If I sell one daughter, I could feed the rest of my children for at least four years. It breaks my heart, but it’s the only way.”
Another resident Saeed told the broadcaster that he had been forced to sell his five-year-old daughter, Shaiqa, after she got appendicitis and a cyst in her liver. He was forced to do so to pay the medical expenses.
Shaiqa’s surgery was successful. The money for it came from the 200,000 Afghani ($3,200/£2,400) she has been sold for to his relative. In five years, however, she will have to leave and go to the relative’s home.
Ahmad said: “If I had taken the whole sum at that time, he would have taken her away. So I told him just give me enough for her treatment now, and in the next five years you can give me the rest after which you can take her.
“If I had money, I would never have taken this decision. But then I thought, what if she dies without the surgery? This way at least she will be alive.”
The US cut nearly all aid to the country last year, with many other key donors also reducing contributions, including the UK. Current UN figures show that the aid received so far this year is 70% lower than in 2025.
The Taliban government rejected any responsibility for donors walking away, stating that “humanitarian assistance should not be politicised”.
