Hundreds of people have secured short-term jobs in Kabul after the election campaign process kicked off this past weekend.
Most of the election candidates have employed ten to twenty people in their campaign offices, and each person earns about 15,000 Afghanis a month.
In addition to the jobs created, publishing companies have also had their work load almost doubled. Some staff are also benefitting as they have had salary increases.
According to one publishing company owner, Zakria Sherzai, their work load and profit margin has increased substantially due to the increase in printing of posters and billboards for candidates.
“Twenty thousand posters, business cards, brochures, flyers, and booklets are being published daily for the election,” said Sherzai.
Merajuddin, a 32-year-old, said he has been unemployed for months and was the only breadwinner in a family of eight. But with the start of the campaign, he and 20 other men have been employed by one of the election candidates and will be paid 15,000 Afghanis this month.
“In the fifteen days that I have been working, it is good, I am earning something for home,” said Merajuddin.
Meanwhile, the Kabul Municipality says that in the first few days of the campaign, government earned about two million Afghanis directly from candidate advertising revenue.
The municipality said this comes from the cost of erecting billboards and hanging posters.
The Independent Election Commission (IEC) said each parliamentary candidate in provinces, with a large population, can spend between 2.3 million and 2.6 million AFs on their campaigns.
In less populated provinces candidates can spend between 800,000 and 920,000 Afghanis.
The commission said that ten staff members at the commission will monitor the process.
“All campaigns, their expenses will be under supervision and they (candidates) will report to the Commission,” said Sayed Hafizullah Hashimi spokesman for the commission.
More than 2,500 people including 400 females will compete for 249 seats in parliament on 20th of October. Almost nine million people registered to vote.