2.4 million Afghan girls denied secondary education under Taliban rule
Around 2.4 million girls in Afghanistan have been denied access to secondary education since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the United Nations said Tuesday, warning that the ban could have severe social and economic consequences.
UNESCO said the number has increased by 200,000 over the past year and could reach nearly 4 million by 2030 if the restrictions remain in place.
UN calls for education rights to be restored
The UN agency called for the immediate restoration of girls’ right to education and condemned what it described as discrimination against women and girls.
Girls were barred from secondary schools in March 2022, while women were later excluded from universities. The Taliban has also imposed restrictions on women’s access to public spaces, workplaces and other areas of daily life.
“These restrictions are reversing two decades of progress in expanding access to education,” UNESCO said.
Heavy social and economic costs
UNESCO estimates that restrictions on women and girls could cost Afghanistan $9.6 billion by 2066.
The country’s wider education system is also facing a deep crisis, with more than half of primary school-age children out of school and more than 90% of 10-year-olds unable to read a simple text.
Poor access to drinking water, sanitation and heating, along with repeated natural disasters and the return of more than seven million Afghans since 2023, has added further pressure to the education system.
“Afghan girls and women have the right to learn, that's a basic human right,” said Hoda Jaberian, UNESCO’s program coordinator for education in emergencies.
Source:turkiyetoday
