30% of booksellers in Afghanistan shut shops due to high taxes, market troubles: Report

livemint.com:

Book culture is fading in Afghanistan gradually as 30% of booksellers have closed their businesses in the Talioban-annexed country. According to a report by local media Tolo News, high taxes, a ban on women's education in universities, and market troubles, Afghanis are unable to purchase books. A bookseller told Tolo News, "There are issues because of the lack of female students' presence in the universities.

This issue also affects the book business." Another bookseller stressed that the market is down and people lack the capacity to buy. He also spoke about various taxes that the booksellers need to pay. Bookseller Mansour Qazizada added, You know that the market is down and the people lack the capacity to purchase books.

Also, there are many types of taxes and the Kabul municipality sends their representatives." Meanwhile, the Taliban-led Ministry of Information and Culture said that efforts were being made to pardon the taxes of the libraries to support the book markets in Afghanistan, according to the report. Mahajar Farahi, deputy minister of Taliban-led Information and Culture for publications, said, "We are trying to waive taxes on books and thus we can implement a tradition of book reading. We have held various exhibitions." Earlier this week, a group of young people in Kabul organised the "Smart Way" book display to strengthen the reading culture in Afghanistan according to a Tolo News report.