Afghanistan under Taliban rule: achievements, challenges and opportunities

After 20 years of war between the Taliban movement in Afghanistan and the United States-led NATO forces, the Taliban forces took control of the capital Kabul and on August 15, 2021, the last US troops left the Kabul airport. About a month after this incident, the Taliban took control of the entire country, established a new administration and established an interim government to run the country. Thus began a new phase for the Taliban movement. That is, the Taliban has turned from a small group that fights against the invaders into an administration that controls an entire country.

Two years and seven months after the establishment of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, although the countries of the world have not yet recognized this government, their relations with the Taliban government continue in various forms. Also, efforts are being made by the United Nations to unify the position of the international community on Afghanistan and to coordinate international humanitarian aid to the Afghan people. It is no exaggeration to say that the meeting held on February 18-19 in Doha, the capital of Qatar, under the auspices of the Secretary General of the United Nations, is an example of these efforts.

The situation in Afghanistan is not as cold and dire as the world media, especially the West, show us. It is also not as bright and completely problem-free as some people think. The Taliban have made some positive progress in the past two and a half years since taking over Afghanistan. At the same time, there are also problems and obstacles.

The achievements of the Taliban government in the last two years and seven months can be seen in the following lines:

Liberation of the country from the American invasion and reduction of the influence of external forces on the internal affairs of the country;

An end to incessant conflicts between different groups on the territory of the country;

The establishment of peace and tranquility after years of unceasing chaos;

The existence of a central administration and government controlling the entire territory of Afghanistan;

Formation of army, police and security services;

Public amnesty should not be carried out against the representatives of the previous government in order to avoid the feeling of revenge and hatred;

Relative stability of trade and availability of goods in markets;

A significant improvement in the value of the Afghan currency, an increase in its value against the dollar and other foreign currencies;

Reduction of administrative corruption in state bodies;

A significant reduction in the cultivation and export of drugs;

Commencement of work on extraction of natural minerals and minerals, including oil and natural gas;

Coordinating the state budget and state expenditures;

Implementation of a number of infrastructure projects, such as construction of new roads and repair of existing ones, use of water resources;

Non-stop operation of airports and internal roads;

To maintain good relations with neighboring countries and the region, to prevent the use of Afghan lands for the benefit of other countries;

Continuous operation of international institutions in the field of health and social assistance.

The above-mentioned achievements and successes of the Interim Government, among other things, provide a great and historic opportunity for Afghanistan to gradually emerge from its nation-weary past of wars, divisions and conflicts. If the Taliban and other Afghan groups continue to make strides toward peace and justice, these successes and peace will be more solid and the country's development will accelerate.

Afghanistan now has a great opportunity to close all the negative pages of the past, to bring stability and progress to a nation that has been at war for years.

Based on the current position of the Taliban movement in the government, their responsibility to the people is greater than before. Because in the past, the Taliban was a simple group that fought against the occupying forces, but now it has become a group that controls the whole country. Naturally, this places a huge responsibility on the Taliban. The two stages experienced by the Taliban and the ones they are going through have their own goals and demands, and the goal of the Taliban, which came to the field as a resistance movement, was to liberate the country from occupation. The goals and tasks of today's Taliban are more complicated than before: they are responsible for managing the country, maintaining peace in it, and forming fair relations. After all, the people expect from them proper management and provision of decent living conditions. The outside world demands a country that conforms to the international system, fulfills its obligations, and abides by international agreements. Mullah Abdul Ghani, the deputy prime minister of the interim government, gave a speech after the Taliban forces entered Kabul. In this speech, he said: "The real testing days of the Taliban movement have started today," and he acknowledged that they have a huge responsibility.

There is no doubt that for the development of Afghanistan, to get rid of the conflicts and conflicts of the past, not only the Taliban, but the action of the whole nation is needed. Men, women, and other minorities among the people, in general, all need to unite and work towards the goal. The Taliban government is required to provide conditions and opportunities for the people to unite towards a common goal, and other parties and groups are required to cooperate with the government.

Taking into account the problems facing Afghanistan, in the current situation, the priority tasks that the government and other Afghan parties should focus on can be highlighted in the following points:

1. Reconciliation of the parties in order to build a modern state, eliminate the possibility of a resurgence of war and conflicts, and lead the country to political stability.

There is no doubt that political stability is the foundation of strong nation-building and development, and these goals cannot be achieved without ensuring continued security and stability. For a country like Afghanistan, which has been experiencing war and unrest for a long time, it will take years to achieve true peace and stability, and to eliminate the causes of internal wars and unrest.

According to observers, the Afghan people expect the government to build a modern, modern state that can meet and support the needs of the people. Also, faster recognition by the outside world, preservation of the religious, national and cultural values of the people, maintaining the balance between compliance with the values of global cooperation despite complications and inconveniences are among the results expected from the new government.

2. Adopting a program (constitution) that expresses the will of the country and the people.

Because the constitution is the ideal basis for state building and establishing a modern and permanent political system that will lead Afghanistan to the rule of law and political stability. It also somewhat closes the door to future unrest in a country weary of civil war and foreign occupation. It goes without saying that stability and development cannot be achieved in a country without constitutional authority and the rule of law.

3. Developing a strategy to improve the economy and attract international investments to rebuild the country and meet the basic needs of the people.

Focusing on economic infrastructure, creating jobs for the youth, providing citizens with basic services such as education, healthcare, electricity and transport, and fighting poverty are some of the biggest challenges for the current government. Government neglect of the economy can have disastrous consequences for the country.

4. Be extremely careful with today's Afghan society.

Because the state of the society formed in recent years is very different from the time of the Taliban who came to power in the previous 90s. Based on statistics, it can be said that about 60% of the population of Afghanistan is young people. This means 35 million young people. This generation is growing up in the era of the Internet, smartphones, computers, television, satellite channels, social networks, and developments in various fields. These young people are being raised by mass media as a generation that cannot be controlled by force.

5. Abolition of restrictions imposed on Afghan women in the field of education and work.

As of December 2022, the doors of secondary and secondary special schools are closed to girls, and Afghan women are also prohibited from attending universities. Also, women were not allowed to work in government institutions. The only exceptions to these barriers are health care and primary education. Many observers assess this situation as an attempt by the interim government to gradually and systematically exclude Afghan women from social, economic, educational and political life, and to destroy the energy of half of society. Therefore, the interim government should reconsider its position regarding women. Because preventing girls from getting post-primary education and preventing women from working leads to domestic problems. At the same time, this situation is an obstacle to the normalization of the relations of the international community with Afghanistan and the external integration of the country.

6. To restore the confidence of youth and national cadres in the future, to create serious reasons for them to stay in the homeland.

Because the wave of migration of Afghan youth and specialized personnel to other countries is still a serious threat to the future of the country.

7. Improving relations in the international arena and establishing warm relations with international organizations.

This measure will ensure the protection of Afghanistan's interests in the international arena, increasing confidence in Afghanistan and ensuring that it will not be isolated in the arena. To date, more than two and a half years have passed, but none of the countries of the world have recognized Afghanistan. Non-recognition still prevents Afghanistan from returning to the international community and taking its natural place in the UN and other international organizations and institutions.

Maintaining the achievements listed at the beginning of the article, achieving new achievements and solving problems requires a high level of knowledge, experience and perseverance. Therefore, in order to get the country out of the crisis, sincere dialogue, cooperation and constructive participation of all parties, components of Afghan society, academic, political and social elite are necessary.

Fazlul Hadi Vaziin, writer, academician

The opinions expressed in the articles are those of the author and may not reflect the views of the editors.