UNESCO: 2.4 million girls barred from school in Afghanistan

UNESCO has reported that approximately 2.4 million girls in Afghanistan are currently unable to attend secondary school, a situation that has worsened significantly since the Taliban regained power in 2021. The organization stated that this number has increased by roughly 200,000 compared to the previous year and could approach nearly four million by 2030 if current policies persist. Hoda Jaberian, UNESCO’s program coordinator for education in emergencies, emphasized that Afghanistan is the only nation globally where girls and women are officially prohibited from attending secondary and higher education institutions. She noted that five years of exclusion equates to nearly the entirety of a typical secondary education cycle. The Taliban assumed control of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces after two decades of conflict. Initially, the group assured the international community that women would be permitted to continue their studies. However, in March 2022, secondary schools were closed to girls, and in December of the same year, women were barred from universities. Although the Taliban labeled these actions as temporary, they have remained in effect. Officials claim they uphold women's rights according to their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan cultural norms, asserting that the issue is internal to the country. Beyond educational restrictions, women in Afghanistan face limitations on employment opportunities and personal mobility. They have also been excluded from public spaces such as parks, gyms, and beauty salons. The United Nations has characterized the broader set of restrictions as “gender apartheid,” highlighting the systemic discrimination against women. Only Russia has formally recognized the Taliban administration. Since the Taliban's takeover, UNESCO reports that the progress made over two decades in expanding girls' access to education has been largely undone. In 2001, girls had minimal access to schooling, but by 2021, nearly one million were enrolled in secondary education. Jaberian expressed concern over the reversal of these gains, stating that UNESCO calls for the immediate and unconditional reinstatement of girls' and women's rights to secondary and higher education. Despite these challenges, UNESCO continues to support community-based education initiatives, literacy programs, and skill-building efforts conducted in local spaces or through home-based facilitators. The impact of the Taliban's educational policies extends into the economic sphere. UNESCO estimates that barring women from secondary and higher education could result in approximately 600,000 women leaving the workforce by 2066. This restriction might lead to cumulative income losses amounting to $9.6 billion and heighten the risk of early marriages. Additionally, the ban exacerbates a shortage of female teachers, with UNESCO projecting a deficit of over 11,000 qualified female educators by 2030. Many teachers have departed the country, and those remaining are prohibited from continuing their work. Restrictions on women teaching boys have led to situations where students receive instruction from unqualified male teachers or none at all. Afghanistan's education system faces challenges extending beyond the prohibition on girls' education. Over two million primary school children are already out of school due to various factors. More than 90% of 10-year-olds struggle to read even basic texts, and the national literacy rate is 37%. Schools are frequently overcrowded and inadequately supplied, with nearly half lacking essential facilities such as clean water, sanitation, or heating. Natural disasters, including earthquakes and floods, have compelled around 1,000 schools to close since 2021, intensifying the strain on the education system. Furthermore, the return of three million individuals to Afghanistan in 2025, either by choice or coercion, has placed additional pressure on an already strained infrastructure.