For This Afghan CEO, Life Under the Taliban ‘Could Be Worse’
For Saad Mohseni, CEO of Afghanistan’s largest media company, Moby Group, business (and life) is a constant balancing act since the Taliban’s takeover in 2021.
While describing the regime as a “police state” in an interview on The Daily Beast Podcast this week, Mohseni argued of the Taliban’s rule that, “There are some successes... I think most Afghans would agree with me that they’re less corrupt than the previous government.”
“The Taliban arrived saying, ‘Hey, we are here to serve you.’ So the courts functioned better. The government, of course, is more attentive to people’s needs. The private sector seems to be in a better place,” he continued, noting also that the opium trade has been curtailed. “So there are some positives, but of course the negatives are really obvious, like a ban on girls' education beyond sixth grade, trying to curtail what women can do in the workplace.”
Mohseni noted that enforcement of these restrictions is often inconsistent. While the country’s capital Kabul sees relative leniency, rural regions endure stricter control. (If you’re caught listening to music in some areas, “he’ll whip you,” he explained.) “For example, women are still working for us. Women are still working for NGOs. Women are still working for the government in most of the country.” Of Kabul specifically, Mohseni continued, “Women walk around faces uncovered. They go to the shops. Women can drive. I mean, I don’t want to give the impression that everything’s okay, but it could be worse.”
“By nature, you push back; you always push the envelope,” Mohseni told co-hosts Joanna Coles and Samantha Bee.
In this vein, Mohseni’s Moby Group has turned to technology. “We are now tutoring a group of girls using WhatsApp,” Mohseni said, as a way to address the ban on formal schooling. Through this initiative, developed in partnership with UNICEF, students ask questions and follow a curriculum-compliant program.
“The girls who participate often outperform boys attending school, and they pass on what they learn to their brothers,” he noted.
Despite these successes, Mohseni acknowledged the program’s limitations. “This is no substitute for a school,” he emphasized. “Kids go to school to interact, play, and build social skills. These girls must be going through hell, stuck inside their homes.”
For now, the tutoring program operates without interference, but he cautioned, “Everything I say ends with ‘for now.’”
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