UNESCO: girls’ education ban hinders Afghanistan’s progress

KABUL (Khaama Press): As the new academic year begins in Afghanistan, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) states that 1.4 million girls above the sixth grade in Afghanistan are deprived of attending school.

UNESCO in Kabul wrote on its social media platform X on Thursday, stating that the deprivation of girls from education will cause severe psychological and emotional harm to them.

The organization continues to warn that the deprivation of girls from education will hinder Afghanistan’s development.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women emphasizes girls’ education in Afghanistan, stating that education is critical to a brighter future for the country.

Alison Davidian, the representative of the UN Women’s Office in Afghanistan, updated on Thursday in a post on the social media platform X that the ban on girls’ education in Afghanistan must end.

At the beginning of the new academic year, many international organizations and institutions reacted strongly to the continuation of girls’ deprivation of education, calling for lifting this restriction.

This comes as the Taliban administration commenced the new academic year on Wednesday, the first of the month, without any mention of the fate of secondary schools and girls’ high schools.

For the third year in a row, the Taliban have banned girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade and universities. This has had a devastating impact on the mental and economic development of females in society.