Afghan children work in brick kilns to support families

"I want to study in the classroom, but I can't," said a 10-year-old Afghan girl while working with her younger siblings in a brick kiln.

KABUL, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- While it may seem unimaginable in many parts of the world, in Afghanistan, it is a common reality: children as young as 10 leave school to toil in brick factories to support their families.

"There are 12 people in my family, but we have no income. I'm here working because we have nothing at home," 10-year-old Omari told Xinhua.

Omari works alongside her family in a brick kiln in the Deh Sabz district, located on the outskirts of Afghanistan's capital, Kabul. Although she dreams of going to school, her family's dire economic situation has made education unattainable.

"I want to study in the classroom, but I can't," said the young girl while working with her younger siblings.

Omari's neighbor, Aziz, a 12-year-old boy, also works in the same kiln. "I work here to support my family because of poverty. Some days I earn 200 Afghanis (about 2.85 U.S. dollars) per day, and other days, I make 250 Afghanis (around 3.5 dollars) per day," Aziz explained.

As the sole breadwinner of his 12-member family, Aziz said that he has no other option but to work.

Decades of war and civil unrest in Afghanistan have devastated countless families, leaving children like Aziz to bear the responsibility of survival. Their childhoods are stolen by the harsh necessity of labor, as they step into adult roles far too early.

While there are no official statistics on the number of child laborers in Afghanistan, thousands of children can be seen working on the streets or taking grueling, labor-intensive jobs such as brick-making and cleaning the windows of cars in congestion.

"We have no income, no shelter. I have no choice but to work in the brick factory from dawn till dusk. Our children are suffering, and we are facing immense hardships," said 45-year-old Nawrang, another worker in the brick kilns.

Nawrang, a father of nine, recounted how extreme poverty forced him to leave his home in Nangarhar province to the outskirts of Kabul a few years ago, hoping to find a job. Despite earning up to 7,000 Afghanis (about 100 dollars) per month, he said, "6,000 or 7,000 Afghanis is simply not enough to support a family."

Afghanistan's long history of war and crippling sanctions have left the country in ruins, with extreme poverty and unemployment becoming pervasive. A report from the World Food Program of the United Nations released this July said that around 23.7 million people require humanitarian assistance in 2024.

Poverty has driven millions of Afghans, including children, to flee their homes, abandon education, and take up any available work, including in the brick kilns, in a desperate attempt to support their families. ■