Shai Chishty

The camp has many children but no schools so they find ways to spend their days around the camp

The people living in the camp are settled and don’t seem to be moving any time soon. The government is struggling to resettle the displaced in peaceful communities because local residents don't want Afghans from other provinces moving into their vil

Many children are scarred from harrowing scenes, many fleeing during the night during NATO bombings of their homes.

Most families struggle to find work. To support their families, young children collect metal in exchange for money- dangerous work which often leads to accidents and injuries.

Space in the camp is limited with no access to electricity, sewage system nor running water.

Children wander around barefoot in the in the extremely harsh winter conditions yet still smiling and playing with each other.

The harsh winter has seen infant mortality rates in the camp increase. Afghanistan is thought to have the worlds third highest infant mortality rate in 2014.

The camp leader is campaigning local government for support in establishing a school for the many young children who have been living in the camp for years without any education at all.

The number of children in the camp is disproportionately high and while they show resilience, many grow up knowing nothing but conflict and instability.

Nasaji Baghrami

Nasaji Baghrami camp for Internally Displaced People (IDP) sits on the outskirts of Kabul. About 360 families live here in absolutely primitive condition, with no access to electricity, sewage system nor running water.

This is just one of more than 50 such camps across Kabul alone where tens of thousands of people live in similar harsh conditions.

The director of IDPs in the Ministry says the number of displaced Afghans has increased by about 100,000 over the past year and has now increased above 600,000.

Shai Chishty

Shai Chishty is a London based documentary photographer. Originally from Birmingham, she established her career working with NGOs on humanitarian projects such as post-cyclone disaster recovery in Bangladesh and the East African food crisis. She has worked with global organisations including Christian Aid, UN Women and Islamic Relief. Shai is particularly interested in the impact of development work on women.

Shai’s work has been published internationally – most notably her work covering the 2014 Afghan elections. Her work on drug rehabilitation received an honourable mention in the 2013 Magenta Flash Forward Award and her work on the internally displaced in Afghanistan received an honourable mention in the International Photography Awards 2016.

Currently studying for a Masters in Photojournalism & Documentary Photography at the London College of Communication, Shai is developing her conceptual practice exploring identity and notions of ‘otherness’.