Education in Afghanistan
[8][9] In December 2022, the Taliban government also prohibited university education for females in Afghanistan, sparking protests and international condemnation.
[10][11] In December 2023, investigations were being held by the United Nations into the claim that Afghan girls of all ages were allowed to study at religious schools.
[12] As of November 2024, some parts of the country allow women to attend religious schools to pursue dentistry, nursing, and other subjects.
[13] According to Acting Education Minister Noorullah Munir, "Afghanistan has 20,000 official schools in which 9,000 are of no use, 5,000 have no building and the remaining 4,000 needed rehabilitation.
"[16] Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, officials under the Islamic Emirate have suspended secondary education to teenage girls.
The number of students receiving higher education per 10,000 of population, rose from 0.66 to 1.44, and construction of a new campus for the Kabul University was taken in hand.
[27] After the overthrow of the Taliban in late 2001, the Karzai administration received substantial international aid to restore the education system.
Afghanistan's then Education Minister, Mohammad Hanif Atmar, said in 2007 that 60% of students were studying in tents or other unprotected structures, and some parents refused to let their daughters attend schools in such conditions.
In “addition to problems of inadequate resources, and lack of qualified teaching staff are issues of corruption.”[32] In 2010, the United States began establishing Lincoln Learning Centers in Afghanistan.
[39] In December 2011, the Baghch-e-Simsim (Afghan version of Sesame Street) children's television series was launched in Afghanistan.
[43] In 1928, Amanullah sent fifteen female graduates of the Masturat middle school, daughters of the royal family and government officials, to study in Turkey.
[44] Soraya Tarzi was the only woman to appear on the list of rulers in Afghanistan, and was credited with having been one of the first and most powerful Afghan and Muslim female activists.
[45] King Amanullah Khan's deposition caused a severe backlash, the girls 'schools were closed, the female students who had been allowed to study in Turkey was recalled to Afghanistan and forced to put on the veil and enter purdah again,[46] and polygamy for men was reintroduced.
[50] When the Taliban returned to power there were concerns that access to education, especially for the female population, would be heavily set back.
But this often meant that girls were not allowed to attend school, as the international aid agency Oxfam reported in 2007 that about one quarter of Afghan teachers were women.
[29] On 20 December 2022, the Taliban banned women from attending universities in Afghanistan, sparking protests and international condemnation.
The Taliban previously arrested another outspoken critic of the ban on women's education Ismail Mashal in February, but he was released from custody on March 5.
[8][9] In December 2023, investigations were being held by the United Nations on the claim that Afghan girls of all ages were allowed to study at religious schools.
[62][63] Women were fearful of attending institutions of primary, secondary, or tertiary education as a result of increased rates of sexual harassment and violence.
[64] Evidently, not only is the physical health of women threatened by instances of sexual assault, but also their mental well-being, as many become depressed and suffer from low self-esteem.
This regulation is founded upon the Islamic interpretation of Sharia law that requires women to be accompanied by a Mehram, or male relative such as their father, husband, or son, when present in public.
[66] Since 2002, under the combined efforts of Afghan and international experts, the curriculum has been changed from Islamic teachings; there are new books and better training.
[67] The current government of Afghanistan stated repeatedly that students must be taught according to Islamic law, without elaborating on what that entails.
[68] The government reassured the public, as well as the international community, that it will reopen schools in rural and urban areas to both male and female students.
Nonetheless, there has been a suspension of such efforts as officials in charge of education claim to be waiting for the development of new curriculum that will focus less on secular subjects, such as mathematics or science, and rather on Islamic studies.
