Only Four Percent of Afghans Want Recognition of Taliban, Says UNAMA

UNAMA has republished a survey from April highlighting that only four percent of Afghans want the Taliban government to be recognised.

According to the survey, 45 percent of respondents said that to improve the situation for women in the country, the international community should facilitate direct dialogue between them and the Taliban.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) conducted the survey by interviewing 888 women in 33 provinces and 64 men in 14 provinces. This report was republished on Wednesday, July 24, on UNAMA's X account.

Based on this survey, 80 percent of women said that they had no interaction with Taliban officials in the past three months, while 16 percent said they had.

At least 53 percent of men, however, reported meeting with local Taliban officials at least once during the three-month period.

Only two percent of women reported having "good" or "full" influence over decision-making processes in the community, compared to 18 percent of men. Women emphasised that they are excluded from public meetings and are unable to directly discuss their issues with local Taliban officials.

The UNAMA survey also indicated that only three to seven percent of women have access to formal and informal dispute resolution mechanisms, whereas 50 percent of men benefit from these mechanisms.

Sixty-four percent of women surveyed said that they "never" feel safe when left alone at home. For men, this figure is two percent. Men stated that they feel less secure when they leave home with a female family member.

In the UNAMA survey, both women and men called on the international community to establish formal mechanisms to ensure women's participation in international meetings related to Afghanistan's future.

Respondents believe that this can be achieved by allocating 50 percent of quota of Afghan delegations to women, ensuring women's presence at any discussion tables related to Afghanistan, or forming an advisory body of women for the international community.