A number of Afghan asylum-seekers in Turkey have been running small businesses such as small restaurants and shops for years, and their customers are mostly Afghans but also people from Iran, Pakistan, and Central Asia.

Omid, an Afghan citizen, has been running a small restaurant in Istanbul for the past five years. He said they make Afghan dishes and recently their Turkish customers have been increasing.

“Now the Turks also know our restaurant and they come here. They eat our food and say it is very delicious. Our business is good,” Omid said.

Sayed Murtaza, a worker at the restaurant, said they prepare different Afghan traditional dishes. “We have the best foods here. We have Afghan soup, Afghan kabab and other traditional Afghan foods.”

According to the asylum-seekers doing businesses in Turkey, the number of Afghan-owned businesses has been increasing in the country. “It is not easy. You have to have a work permit, do your business, and pay taxes,” said Mohammad Rasul, another restaurant owner.

In addition to restaurants, some Afghans have opened shops selling Afghan domestic products, including dried fruits, handicrafts, and Afghan cloths. Mohammad Naeem, an Afghan asylum-seeker selling Afghan products in Istanbul. said almost all kinds of Afghan dried fruits are available in such shops in Turkey.

In recent years, Turkey has been one of the main conduits through which Afghans are trying to reach European countries.