Taliban have barred 2.4 mn Afghan girls from school

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) reports that the Taliban have prevented an estimated 2.4 million Afghan girls from attending secondary education since their return to power in Afghanistan in 2021. As the group prepares to mark the fifth anniversary of their regime this week, concerns about human rights violations persist among international observers.

Afghanistan is the sole nation where girls and women are legally barred from secondary and higher education, according to UNESCO. This discriminatory policy risks plunging the country into decades of lost potential, increased poverty, and irreversible harm, the agency warns. The ban on female secondary and higher education could result in 600,000 Afghan women leaving the workforce by 2066, causing $9.6 billion in cumulative income losses, and heightening the risk of early marriage, UNESCO asserts.

The Taliban-run Ministry of Education has not yet commented on the issue. Following the United States' troop withdrawal in 2021, the Taliban initially reassured the global community that women would retain their rights to education. However, secondary schools were closed for girls in March 2022, and women were barred from attending universities in December 2022. The Taliban claim these restrictions are temporary, but they have persisted.

In addition to limiting educational opportunities, Taliban policies also constrain women's employment and mobility. The group justifies its stance by claiming it upholds women's rights according to its interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan culture. The Taliban's restrictions on women's higher education are also anticipated to worsen a shortage of female teachers, with over 2 million primary school children already out of school for reasons other than the bans on girls and women, UNESCO states.

UNESCO estimates that Afghanistan will face a deficit of more than 11,000 qualified female teachers by 2030. Many educators have left the country, and those who remained are prohibited from teaching boys. This decision has removed a significant number of qualified educators from the system and forced boys to be taught by unqualified male teachers, exacerbating the already poor quality of education. UNESCO reports that over 90% of 10-year-olds in Afghanistan cannot read simple texts, with national literacy rates at 37%.

Furthermore, overcrowded and inadequately equipped schools plague Afghanistan, with nearly half lacking water, sanitation, or heating facilities. In 2025 alone, an additional 3 million people are set to return to Afghanistan, either voluntarily or forcibly, placing further strain on the already overwhelmed school system. Since 2021, natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods have forced the closure of 1,000 schools, UNESCO adds.