Minorities | Taliban culture minister Shir Ahmad Haqqani says correcting people's belief comes before the economy, as the UN warns nearly 16 million Afghans face hunger

ACW | October 22, 2026 — Shir Ahmad Haqqani, the Taliban's minister of information and culture, said at the launch of a book by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada that correcting people's religious belief takes priority over the economy and livelihoods, Afghanistan International and Didpress reported.

The reports were published on Wednesday, October 21, 2026. They did not say when or where the book launch took place.

According to Didpress, Haqqani said that "correcting belief comes before all other issues" and that having a job or not matters less than preserving faith. He called the Taliban administration an "Islamic caliphate" and said its main goal is to recognise the oneness of God and spread that belief.

Didpress reported that the minister also said Taliban officials cannot solve all of people's problems and expressed hope that God would resolve them. He added that the Taliban government is working on reconstruction and economic improvement. Afghanistan International wrote that Haqqani stressed spreading the Taliban leader's decrees.

The remarks come as the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned on Tuesday, October 20, that nearly 16 million people in Afghanistan face hunger, Khaama Press reported. According to OCHA, 3.4 million of them are at emergency levels of hunger.

Background: Afghanistan International described Haqqani as the Taliban's new minister of information and culture. In its quarterly update for July to September 2026, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that the Taliban closed at least 10 Shia institutions in Kabul and Ghazni. ACW covered that report in UNAMA: Taliban close at least 10 Shia institutions in Kabul and Ghazni.

Why it matters: Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights protects everyone's freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including the freedom to change one's religion or belief. A Taliban minister naming the "correction" of people's belief as a government priority, alongside UNAMA's reporting on the closure of Shia institutions, raises serious questions for freedom of religion or belief for minorities in Afghanistan.

ACW will continue to follow this story.

Sources: Afghanistan International — Taliban minister: our priority is belief, not the economy; Didpress — Taliban: people's religion and belief take priority over economy and livelihood; Khaama Press — Nearly 16 million Afghans face acute hunger

Photo: Didpress