ISLAMABAD: Findings of UNHCR’s “Afghanistan post-return monitoring survey report” released on Tuesday highlighted different challenges for Afghan returnees from Iran versus Pakistan: those from Iran often have more education, better food security, and housing, while returnees from Pakistan face severe economic hardship, relying more on daily wages, and carrying heavier debt burdens.
The returnees from Iran were less likely to have income-generating employment, and more often reported barriers to girls’ education. Those returning from Pakistan after April found more casual income opportunities but struggled to afford rent and maintain sufficient food.
According to the survey, across all groups, returnees continue to settle in areas with fragile conditions marked by deepening poverty and limited access to essential services. Many cannot return to their areas of origin due to lack of shelter, land, or livelihoods. Over half of households surveyed reported missing essential civil documentation, restricting access to education, healthcare, and housing.
Education remains sharply constrained for all women and girls in Afghanistan: returnees from Iran most often cited policies and laws as the key barrier, while returnees from Pakistan pointed to economic obstacles. Access to healthcare is limited by cost, distance, and medicine short ages, with women disproportionately affected due to movement restrictions, survey results show.
UNHCR says Afghans coming from Iran more educated, have better food security than those returning from Pakistan
Most returnees (88 per cent) reported living in debt, representing a slight decline from the 2024 survey. Indebted households were typically large, averaging six members. Debt was particularly widespread in Nangarhar province, where 96 per cent of returnees reported financial distress.
Returnees from Iran were slightly less likely to hold debt than those from Pakistan, while differences between female-headed (90 per cent) and male-headed (87 per cent) households were minimal. Almost all indebted households stated that their debt exceeded their monthly income, under scoring widespread, unsustainable debt cycles and the financial pressures that undermine economic reintegration.
In August 2025, the monitoring expanded to include returnees from Iran for the first time, alongside those from Pakistan.
This round draws on interviews with 1,658 returnee households from Pakistan and Iran. Two new data sets were introduced for returnees from Pakistan: one for those who returned before April 2025 and one for those who returned after when cash assistance was reduced due to funding shortfalls.
The survey also includes undocumented returnees, allowing analysis of possible differences between returnees with refugee documentation in countries of asylum and those without.
The UN refugee agency says these findings highlight the urgency of sustained, multisectoral support to protect returnees and assist their reintegration. Interventions must be tailored to the differing profiles and needs of returnees from Iran and Pakistan, taking into account their distinct vulnerabilities and circumstances behind their return. Continued post-return monitoring remains critical to track evolving challenges, adapt programming, and advance long-term stability and protection.
The changes in data sets reflect the need to understand evolving returnee experiences. In 2025, Afghanistan saw massive return movements, with an estimated 2.7 million returns between January and November. These returns reflect changes in the profiles of those coming back.
Many returns occurred under duress and adverse conditions, driven by policies in neighbouring countries and deteriorating conditions for Afghans abroad, particularly in Pakistan and Iran. These mass returns often resulted in abrupt departures and difficult journeys back to Afghanistan.
Food insecurity remains critical despite modest improvements, with returnees from Pakistan disproportionately affected. Shelter, water, and education access further highlight disparities. Returnees from Pakistan, particularly recent arrivals, are more likely to rent housing and struggle to afford rent, whereas returnees from Iran more often own or inherit their homes. Access to safe water and sanitation is also more limited for returnees from Pakistan.
These findings highlight the urgency of sustained, multisectoral support that addresses both immediate and long-term needs. Assistance must combine short and medium-term cash support with livelihood opportunities, durable housing solutions, water and health infrastructure, and access to civil documentation, among other key needs and challenges faced by returnees.
Targeted interventions are essential for the most vulnerable groups, including female-headed households and people with disabilities. Continued monitoring, disaggregated by country and period of return, is critical to adapting programming based on evidence and ensuring that reintegration translates into lasting improvements in stability and protection.
Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2025
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