Afghan minister becomes bicycle courier in Germany after moving there for a better life

A former communications minister in the Afghan government is now a delivery man in the eastern city of Leipzig after moving to Germany for a better life.

Sayed Sadaat moved to Germany last December in the hope of a better future.

He said some people back home in Afghanistan criticised him for taking such a job after having served in the government for two years, leaving office in 2018, Reuters reports.

But the 49-year-old British-Afghan dual citizen said: “I have nothing to feel guilty about.”

He had quit the Afghan government because of disagreements with members of the president’s circle, he said according to Reuters.

“I hope other politicians also follow the same path, working with the public rather than just hiding,” he added.

Though Sadaat was mocked for leaving to take on a delivery job, those at home are now hoping to leave after the Taliban took over government in Afghanistan.

Sadaat’s family and friends are hoping to join the thousands of others on evacuation flights or trying to find other routes out of Afghanistan.

Sadaat said he chose to move to Germany because he expected it to have a better economic future and a leading role in the telecom and IT sectors in the long term.

Yet, even with his background, Sadaat has struggled to find a job in Germany that matched his experience.

With degrees in IT and telecommunications, Sadaat had hoped to find work in a related field. But with no knowldge of the language, his chances were slim.

“The language is the most important part,” said Sadaat.

Every day he does four hours of German at a language school before starting a six-hour evening shift delivering meals for Lieferando, where he started this summer.