The Knock that Changed Everything 

Then came a knock on the door that brought an opportunity for support. A team from UNDP’s reconstruction project had arrived, offering to help rebuild her home. Rahila had been selected as a beneficiary by the village Shelter Committee, a community group formed by the project to ensure that the most vulnerable received support. She was granted US$1,000 in cash assistance, disbursed in three installments, to retrofit her home using traditional earthquake-resistant construction methods. 

With support from the Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (STFA), UNDP provided technical and financial assistance to 400 vulnerable households in Herat. These families rebuilt or retrofitted their homes using local materials and incorporated anti-seismic features to better withstand future shocks. 

UNDP has long been active in Herat, supporting livelihoods, infrastructure, water management, energy, and women-led businesses. When the earthquakes struck, efforts quickly shifted to meet urgent needs. This included providing hot meals through community kitchens and designing earthquake-resistant homes. 

The reconstruction initiative followed an owner-driven approach. Homeowners either built their homes themselves or, in the case of women-headed households, with help from relatives or local masons. This method not only gave families ownership of the process but also created jobs for local workers, helping to revive the local economy. Rahila’s home retrofitting began in February 2025 and was completed by May. 

“I am deeply grateful to the project for helping me to retrofit two rooms in my house. Without this support, this could not have happened,” Rahila said. 

Creating Jobs for Returnees 

The reconstruction effort had another benefit: it also created employment for returnees, who had lived abroad as migrants or refugees and returned home facing economic uncertainty. 

Since late 2023, more than 2.4 million undocumented Afghan migrants have returned from Pakistan and Iran, many of them forcibly deported. 

Mohammad Amir, 38, is one of these returnees. He returned voluntarily from Iran in February 2025 after hearing about the shelter project in his home village in Kushk Robat Sangi district, Herat province. He quickly found work as a skilled laborer, helping to rebuild homes for families affected by the earthquake. 

Returnees like Amir received on-the-job training in earthquake-resistant construction, gaining valuable skills that are now in high demand. This approach benefits both the families and the workers, who now have sustainable livelihoods. 

“This experience has not only brought income but also given me new skills I can use in the future,” Amir said. 

Another returnee, Mohammad Eisa, was deported from Iran in December 2024. Today, he works in Bazar Gharbi village in Kushk-e Rubat Sangi district, where he has taken on contracts to construct or retrofit seven homes. He earns between 37,000 and 40,000 Afghanis (approximately 500 to 600 US dollars) per house. 

“Now I have reliable work, I’m with my family, and I feel safe,” Eisa shared. “I hope projects like this continue so that others don’t have to risk going abroad just to find a job.” 

In Kushk Robat Sangi district, Herat province alone, UNDP has created over 900 jobs, including more than 300 skilled and 600 unskilled positions for local construction workers and masons. The project is supporting the construction of 224 new shelters and the retrofitting of 176 damaged homes, most of which are nearing completion.