Temporary legal jobs in Gulf countries could offer a lifeline for Afghans struggling with Afghanistan’s “dim” economic prospects, the World Bank said in a statement.

"Labor mobility represents an important opportunity for Afghan migrants, the Afghan economy, and recipient countries,” the report continued.

In December of last year, more than 500,000 Afghan refugees were deported from Iran and Pakistan and sent across the border to Afghanistan. In January, the Pakistani government again announced moves to expel Afghans, giving millions of refugees the country until the end of the month to return.

With Afghanistan’s unemployment rate standing at 20 percent, a continued influx of returnees is putting further strain on the country’s fragile economy.

The World Bank found that most Afghans were unskilled and had little formal education, arguing that legal pathways would help create skills.

Main destination for migrant workers

The Gulf States are one of the main destination regions worldwide for migrant workers. Migrants in the six Gulf States account for over 10 percent of all migrants globally, and migrant workers make up the majority of the population in Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO).

If Afghanistan signed bilateral agreements with nearby Gulf countries, it could create 75,000 overseas jobs annually and triple remittances within 15 years, the World Bank concludes.

More than 6 million Afghans fled to neighboring countries after the 1979 Soviet invasion. Since 2015, some 2 million Afghans have been deported from Iran and Pakistan or chose to return voluntarily, according to British aid organization Oxfam as reported by Thomson Reuters.