Our First Person narratives dig into the humanity of humanitarian challenges.

In this episode, Ali Latifi, The New Humanitarian's Asia Editor and co-host of the What's Unsaid podcast, marks the anniversary of the creation of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate in his home country, Afghanistan.

Three years on, the country is still in the throes of a humanitarian crisis, with 23.7 million people in need of assistance. Latifi says: "We're in a situation full of paradoxes". He paints a picture of how traders, TikTokers, and the Taliban co-exist, while noting: "In the Islamic Emirate, everything seems fine – until it's not".

The New Humanitarian aims to amplify the voices of refugees, asylum seekers, and people affected by conflict and disaster – placing them at the centre of the conversations about the policies and events that shape their lives. Find more first-person stories at TheNewHumanitarian.org.