Over 50% of Afghans want to leave their country – Gallup poll

The majority of Afghans want to leave their homeland for good, according to a Gallup poll released on Monday.

The survey of 2,002 Afghan adults in August and September last year found that a record 53 percent would leave their country if they had the chance.

Gallup said that the percentage, one of the highest in the world in 2021, is potentially even higher now, with millions on the brink of starvation since the IEA’s takeover.

It said that the spike in the percentage of Afghans who would like to move is likely to fuel concerns in the region and Europe about a repeat of the 2015 migrant crisis — on top of the ongoing situation with Ukraine.

Between 2018 and 2021, the percentage of men who said they would like to leave shot up 21 points, from 35% to 56%. And over the same period, the percentage of Afghans with more than a primary education who wanted to leave increased 22 points from 40% to 62%, according to Gallup.

Desire to migrate rose little among women, from 47% in 2018 to 50% in 2021.

Turkey, Germany, Canada and the U.S. top the list for the most desired destinations for Afghans.