Aseel has become an online marketplace that connects the aspiring skilled artisans from developing countries with global buyers who value unique, artistic handmade products. The platform caters to a diverse audience, offering a wide array of products ranging from handmade ceramics, art/painting, wooden products, bags and accessories, jewellery, and books. Practising the principle of “Buy Good,” every item showcases a captivating fusion of timeless and contemporary designs.

Another principle at the core of Aseel’s operations is “Do Good,” where a transparent and seamless aid platform works to ensure each donated dollar reaches the right hand. It offers its global users various options, from donating emergency packages, launching or exploring the latest Campaigns and Grand Challenges, to allowing Aseel to decide.

Aseel recently introduced an update to its app called “DirectAid Beta,” which presents a three-in-one approach: Send Aid, Track Aid, and Receive a Video, aiming to make aid delivery more transparent, engaging, and impactful. Through partnerships with reputable organisations and “Atalan Network,” the company delivers crucial humanitarian assistance to vulnerable Afghan families and individuals with registered Omid IDs.

Aseel has launched another large-scale humanitarian initiative to support returnees arriving in Afghanistan. To know more about the campaign, International Finance caught up with Nasrat Khalid, the founder and CEO of Aseel app, who shed further insights into the initiative and “Campaign + by Aseel,” another crowdfunding effort.

Could you share details about Aseel’s recently launched large-scale humanitarian initiative to support returnees arriving in Afghanistan?

At Aseel, we believe the journey doesn’t end with emergency aid—it starts there. Many aid efforts tend to be one-off responses, but we’re building a long-term pathway for returnees to rebuild their lives with dignity. Our approach begins by registering individuals upon arrival and providing immediate support: emergency nutrition packages, trauma care kits for children (including toys), and temporary shelters like tents. But we don’t stop at relief—our work continues as these families return to their home provinces.

A key component of our campaign is the registration of returnee families through our Omid ID system. This digital identification allows us to track families wherever they move within Afghanistan and ensures that aid can be delivered to them consistently, even beyond the border area. Through our Atalan Network—a dedicated group of local humanitarians—we reconnect with each family to ensure they’re not forgotten. This last-mile delivery system helps us offer continued support and reintegration assistance at the community level.

Given the scale of Aseel’s humanitarian efforts, what logistical or financial challenges has the campaign encountered?

Aseel’s humanitarian campaign for Afghan returnees at Torkham has faced several logistical and financial challenges. Torkham is located around one and a half hours from Jalalabad city, which already makes aid delivery time-consuming. On top of that, some essential supplies, especially shelter items and tents, are not available in bulk in Jalalabad. We often have to transport these items from Kabul, which is about six to seven hours away, adding both time and cost to the process.

While we haven’t faced issues with storage, the short stay of many returnees at the border camp creates an additional challenge. Most families leave shortly after arrival, making it hard to distribute aid directly at the camp. To solve this, we’ve introduced the Omid ID system.

Each family is registered and given an Omid Card, allowing us to locate and assist them once they reach their final destination in any province. This system helps us continue to support them even after they leave the camp and ensures they don’t have to carry heavy aid supplies themselves.

Financially, the increasing number of returnees is placing growing pressure on our resources. Fundraising takes time, and even when we reach our targets, the funds usually cover only a small group of those in need.

Shelter kits and clothing kits are especially costly, so we rely on surveys to prioritise the most vulnerable families. With more funding, we could expand this support to reach many more individuals and provide more comprehensive assistance.

Could you elaborate on the types of support Aseel provides to returnees, and share the measurable impact the initiative has made so far?

Our campaign has already reached over 800 individuals with emergency food packages delivered directly to their tents. We’re now scaling this effort day by day—aiming to serve 500, then 5,000, and beyond. Every new arrival receives a one-week emergency food package as we assist with their transition back to their home provinces. Our next step is to give them temporary shelters for a week and then arrange transportation to their home province.

Can you provide insights into Aseel’s crowdfunding initiative, “Campaign + by Aseel,” and how it supports humanitarian relief?

Campaign+ is Aseel’s purpose-built crowdfunding tool for humanitarian crises like the current returnee emergency. Unlike platforms based in the world’s 20 wealthiest countries, Campaign+ empowers underserved nations to raise funds transparently. Donors receive clear, verifiable proof of impact through images, videos, and documents, showing exactly how their contributions helped.

Could you tell us about collaborations or partnerships Aseel has formed with international NGOs or global humanitarian organisations?

Aseel has partnered with top global institutions to rethink humanitarian aid from the ground up. Our platform, AidOS, was developed through structured research and collaboration with organisations like USAID and MIT. Additional partnerships with groups like Humanity during Ramadan, and cultural initiatives such as a circus show for children affected by the Herat earthquake, show how we combine relief with dignity, joy, and innovation.

Tell us more about “Aseel Atalan,” and how it connects purpose-driven individuals around the world to those in need.

Atalans, meaning “heroes,” are the backbone of our delivery system. They manage the last mile of distribution by picking up care packages from local vendors and delivering them directly to verified beneficiaries. Like modern logistics networks, they’re equipped to provide donors with proof of delivery, ensuring transparency and accountability in every action.

Additionally, Aseel Atalan is built as a robust network to support artisans who create handmade products. From identifying talented artisans in their communities to facilitating shipping overseas, Atalan’s initiatives help transform struggling families into sustainable earners through digital solutions.

Could you explain in detail what “Omid ID” is and how it allows donors to send direct aid to those in need?

Omid ID was recognised as a semifinalist by MIT Solve for its smart approach to humanitarian aid. It’s a special ID card that includes each beneficiary’s verified information and a wishlist of what they need. When a donor selects a care package, our system matches it to someone whose wishlist includes that exact item, making sure the help is relevant and impactful. A powerful example comes from the recent floods in Baghlan.

One affected person shared that he had lost his home and almost everything in it, but he was receiving wheat. What he needed most at that moment was a tent, followed by cooking equipment. This is exactly the kind of gap Omid ID helps to fill. By letting people share what they need, we ensure every donation is useful, timely, and truly life-changing.

The post Technology connects donors to real human needs: Aseel CEO Nasrat Khalid appeared first on International Finance.

According to reports, the earthquake in the southeastern provinces of Paktika and Khost resulted in at least 1,100 fatalities and more than 1,500 injuries. Those numbers startled Afghans inside and outside the country and spurred them into action, as groups of volunteers headed towards the remote districts of Gaiyan, Spera, Barmal and Orgun.

One of the first ones to set out from Kabul was the team behind ‘Aseel’, a mobile app originally designed to sell Afghan-made handicrafts to global markets. Over the last year, they have transformed the app to become an aid distribution and fundraising platform in response to the sanctions, banking restrictions and aid cutbacks that were imposed on Afghanistan.

International Finance caught up with Nasrat Khalid, the founder of ‘Aseel’ mobile application, who shared his insights about the app, emergency packages, ‘Atalan’, and much more.

Excerpts from the interview:

International Finance: What is the idea behind the ‘Aseel’ mobile app?

Nasrat Khalid: In 2019, the Aseel platform, website, and iOS/Android mobile application were initially designed to support and connect Afghan artisans, especially artisans from rural Afghanistan. We enrolled over 100 small family-owned and women-owned businesses from all over Afghanistan and sold over 10,000 handmade products to people in countries like the US, Australia, and the UK. We used to ship all our products through DHL, International Shipping Service from Bagram Airbase before the fall of the republic of Afghanistan.

After Afghanistan came under a new regime, most of the enrolled businesses stopped. After a brief full pause in the delivery of products, we found ways of sending products cross-border to neighboring countries and then shipping them to the US and elsewhere. As a platform committed to supporting people and development, we decided to use the platform as a means to help Afghan people. At that time, organizations such as the United Nations, the Red Cross, the International Rescue Committee, the World Food Program, etc., were unable to do money transfers, transportation, and human resources, in such a high-risk environment ‘Aseel’ went beyond and came up as a helping hand to Afghan people.

Aseel launched its emergency response (ER) (now called Aseel Do Good) program and has distributed aid packages to 62,241 families and 4,35,687 individuals in 28 provinces of Afghanistan. The Aseel mobile application and website allow people to purchase necessary aid packages and our team on the ground will deliver them to families in need inside Afghanistan.

Also, ‘Aseel’ enables people to support specific families inside Afghanistan through “Aseel Beneficiary Forms.” This option is best for those who have relatives or their families who are still living in Afghanistan. The donor fills out the Aseel beneficiary forms, receives a beneficiary ID (called Omid Hope IDs), and then donates any aid package. The Omid ID helps both the donors and the beneficiaries track the delivery of the aid packages. Furthermore, ‘Aseel’ also engages people worldwide to create fundraiser campaigns to support people in Afghanistan for more significant community distributions.

IF: What do you offer to your users?

NK: We offer two features to people: First is ‘Do Good’ which enables anyone, anywhere in the world, to directly send aid to Afghans transparently. And second is ‘Buy Good’ which enables anyone, anywhere in the world, to buy handmade products directly from Afghanistan and receive it in homes in the US, Canada, and Australian markets.

IF: You played a significant role in helping people during the earthquake in June. Tell us about it.

NK: On June 22, 2022, around 1:30 AM, a massive earthquake shook eastern Afghanistan (AFT). Over 1,000 people died, and 1,500 suffered severely. Due to the earthquake, homes and livelihoods were destroyed, and many family members were homeless. Aseel mobilized assistance and provided essential services to survivors.

Our emergency response team began distributing the first batch of 1000 gifts to those in immediate need of assistance while documenting and identifying the recipients in the disaster-affected areas. Aseel launched a Grand Challenge (GC) in affected areas. The aim was to raise USD 150,000 to buy a portion of exceptional food, hygiene, and life packages for the earthquake-affected households. We managed to raise USD 150,000 and supported over 1,000 people. We were on the scene before any other rescue groups to assist people.

IF: Take us through the emergency packages that your app offers.

NK: The aid packages were designed based on our research from the ground and the people’s needs which include emergency food packages, emergency medical packages, emergency baby care packages, and emergency life packages. The platform also allows people to donate a certain amount of money and let Aseel decide on buying the boxes for the affected families. Packages include flour, oil, rice, beans, slabs, chickpeas, macaroni, salt, sugar, tea, and milk. The sanitary package includes paper, pads, masks, disinfectant liquid, a box for children in the north, milk, diapers, clothing, and winter aids.

IF: Can you tell us about young Afghan volunteers ‘Atalan’ and what role they play?

NK: The success of Aseel is all because of ‘Atalan’ (volunteers), who provide insightful local knowledge and real-time humanitarian updates. These brave individuals are minimally compensated for their time and transportation costs yet help verify beneficiaries and deliver aid to families, both integral to Aseel’s operations. During the transition, well-known organizations such as The United Nations and Red Cross could not operate within the country due to the high-risk environment coupled with a lack of transportation and the inability to transfer funds. Aseel’s Atalan excelled as individuals and was among the first to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan through the Emergency Response program.

IF: Can you tell us about your different campaigns and how they benefit Afghanistan’s commoners?

NK: Aseel is collecting donations in the form of crowdfunding from all over the world on the platform and is reaching the needy in Afghanistan. All campaigns are created to benefit the people of Afghanistan. Campaigns range from support to the ultra-poor in the form of food packages to support for education, women empowerment, and so on.

IF: Tell us about your distribution channel. How can you reach out to local people?

NK: We have organized teams of volunteers (more than 150 individuals) in different provinces of Afghanistan that can support the dissemination of these emergency packages and a group of volunteers out of Afghanistan that can help us make partnerships with donors, media agencies, social media, and so on. Aseel enables anyone from anywhere to help an individual or family in Afghanistan.

IF: How do you plan to take ‘Aseel’ global?

NK: We know that our fintech system, which was in place way before this crisis started, custom solutions development, and global connection with the rest of the world is much better than large-scale international development institutions and charity organizations. At the same time, we are an Afghan company that was born out of Afghanistan and went on to try to become a global company. This means that we understand scaling and growth from a startup perspective which is an excellent fit for the current situation. Our Atalan platform provides the local infrastructure for communities to take action while connecting to the rest of the world.

Moreover, the vast handmade market is estimated to be around USD 1 Billion in value and backed by the worth of companies such as Etsy (USD 16 Billion). While most of the world’s handmade items are created in underdeveloped countries, there is no infrastructure to support them. We believe Aseel can quickly fill this gap as we expand into other countries.

IF: You have tie-ups with more than 100 brands. How do you manage to attract them?

NK: We have a local team that enrolls vendors; we have photography studios to capture the products and their photos. In addition, our “Atalan” volunteers get paid based on each product they add to our platform and the sales they receive.

IF: What are your plans for Aseel?

NK: We are planning to do two things, first is to enable anyone, anywhere in the world, to support anyone, anywhere in Afghanistan, which we are planning to do 100% transparently. For this, we are registering people who need support and providing them with Omid IDs. After doing this we will map them with resources from the international community.

Secondly, we are planning to empower women and all artisans to sell their products globally. Our company can create Ten thousand jobs in Afghanistan in the next three years, and we believe that, amongst other sustainable efforts for Afghanistan, even our contribution can change the direction. Our company can bend this curve and return to getting Afghanistan on the right path.

For Aseel as a technology company, though, we want to be a publicly traded company and expand the operations to other countries that need help. So many disasters in the world leave innocent people affected, but no functional system takes care of them. Aseel can be that!

The post Our campaigns help people of Afghan: Aseel appeared first on International Finance.