Beauty saloons are to be found everywhere in Kabul but many are not licenced and offer poor quality services that even pose health risks.
The union of beauty establishments has 1,200 members but the presidency of market management says licences were issued only to 300.
Khair Mohammad Safdari, the head of market management at Kabul Municipality, blames the zonal heads for the confusion. According to him, each one considers himself a mayor and issues licences without the mandatory approvals.
A beauty saloon must be able to show cleanliness and sanitation facilities, and the staff should be professionally qualified. The presidency only issues licences to establishments that have approvals from both the Ministry of Public Health for sanitation and the union.
Since the licence costs money most people do not bother to get it. From time to time Kabul Municipality conducts inspections and those beauty parlours found flouting the rules are shut down.
According to Safdari, the municipality can close the make-up shop for three days. “Even this is often not possible considering we are only a few people,’ he says.
Beauty parlours blame the authorities for delaying the licencing process, but officials say it is because most people in the business have certificates from abroad and it is impossible to ascertain if these are fake or real.
There are also complaints about the tax collection process. Taxes are high and there is no transparency in the collection, says Ferozan Paiwand, owner of one of Kabul’s big beauty businesses. She says she went to a zonal office to request taxes should be collected in installments and the head gave her his business card and said she must contact him at night.
Grey areas
Breshna Naderi who heads the union of beauty establishments says the taxation process is arbitrary. “We receive many complaints that beauty saloons doing good business, often in good neighbourhoods, pay very little tax while small businesses in poorer areas are paying much higher taxes.”
But Amena Ahmadi, who heads the section concerned with small businesses in the Ministry of Finance, says there are tax slabs and transparency in the process. She adds that complaints about corruption and unfair taxation should be submitted in writing with evidence to the Directorate of Revenues.
“Whether they are beauty saloons or our employees, action will be taken within the parametres of the law,” she promises.
Beauty saloons are unregulated business. Rates vary from establishment to establishment.
Tahmina, a resident of Kabul city, says she went to a beauty parlour for her wedding make-up and paid 35,000 Afs (515 USD) for a simple bridal make-up package. But this would be unaffordable for families with limited financial resources, Tahmina says. Sometimes the cost could go up to 50,000 Afs (735 USD) for wedding make-up.
“There may be two or three saloons in a neighbourbood offering same services and their rates could vary depending on where their certificates for qualification are from,” Tahmina explains. Beauty saloons boast of certificates from Iran and Turkey or other countries in the region.
Shabnam (name changed at her request), a client in a beauty parlour in Taimany, wishes rates were regulated. She thinks some establishments fleece customers.
Rahela in a saloon in Kart e called Maleka Turkia (Turkish Queen) claims she has 12 years of experience in the business. She concedes rates are not fixed. A client could sometimes pay 1,000 Afs (15 USD) for a haircut, she says.
Frozan Paiwand is in charge of the Blue Lady saloon in Klola Pooshta. Prices vary because individual clients’ requirements vary, she explains. At the Blue Lady “the cheapest bridal package is 10,000 Afs (145 USD) and most expensive between 20,000 and 25,000 Afs (357 USD),” she says. Paiwand says she was trained in Iran, Korea and Dubai and has 18 years experience.
Serious risks
The Ministry of Public Health insists those in the beauty business must be literate. Unfortunately this rule is not enforced and clients are put to danger.
Ghulam Dastageer Nabizada, head of environmental health in the ministry, says they received a complaint from the family of a woman who lost her mind after losing all her hair four years back. She has had to be hospitalised. The family took the matter to court and the judge ruled in their favour: the beauty parlour was shut down and the owner convicted to six months in prison.
Similar incidents have been reported from Karta e Naw, Haji Yaqoob square and other areas of Kabul.
Nabizada says the union of beauty establishments is offering 3-month courses in coordination with the Ministry of Public Health on what cosmetics they should use and the health risks of products that they should be aware of.
Naderi from the union of beauty establishments mentions a 4-year beauty course at Jamohoriat high school. However, it is not as popular as it would be if it was a two-year course, she thinks.
Cheap or spurious cosmetics laden with lead and other material with serious consequences to health are widely used. Dr Fawzia Kabuli, a dermatologist and lecturer, suggests a campaign to raise awareness is a critical requirement.
Both Abdul Khaleq Watandost Zazai, head of the union of pharmaceutical importers, and Nasir Qalawal, a trader, confirm the market is flooded with poor quality imports including cosmetics. “It is cheaper,” says Qalawal.
