Paula Cordeiro
International Women’s Day (IWD), celebrated on March 8th each year, is a global day recognizing the social, economic, and political achievements of women. This day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. So, what’s the most recent status of girls around the world with regard to their educational opportunities?
Last fall UNESCO reported that there are 50 million more girls in school today than there were in 2015. This is a major achievement! And during this period, completion rates for girls increased from 86% to 89% in primary school, and from 54% to 61% in high school. There are five million more girls completing all levels of education every year now compared to seven years ago. We have made great strides, but there are still 122 million girls out-of-school around the world today. We need to continue to prioritize ensuring an education is made available to all girls and young women.
In a 2023 World Bank blog Kattan, Rawlings, and Merchant noted that although “…education outcomes for girls have improved, that has not been the case for girls in high poverty and settings of fragility. They still face challenges regarding conflict and violence resulting in low attendance and enrollment.”
The nonprofit organization ONE which was founded in 2004 by Bono and other activists who wanted a better and more just world, created an index listing the Top Ten Toughest Places for a Girl to Get an Education. Clearly it is in nations with high poverty, and those that are undergoing continuing conflict, where girls have the lowest education levels. One of those nations is Afghanistan.
Last fall I had the pleasure of meeting Afghanistan’s award-winning women’s rights advocate Sveto Muhammad Ishoq. Sveto was selected to be a Women’s Peacemaker Fellow at the University of San Diego’s Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice. I asked Sveto to share some stories with us about education for girls in Afghanistan.
Can you provide an overview of the current state of education for girls in Afghanistan?
Afghanistan currently remains the only country in the world where girls are not allowed to go to school above sixth grade. Afghan girls are not only deprived of going to school, but to any educational institutions such as universities and courses. A week ago, photos of school children were circulating across Afghanistan of girls in tears. It was the last day of the academic year, which meant girls who have completed sixth grade are now banned from furthering their studies. Afghan women and girls are deprived of their basic human rights, of their basic Islamic right. While the Taliban emphasize that they want to implement Sharia law, their rules are clearly unIslamic. Throughout our Islamic history, we had female teachers, scholars, entrepreneurs who played an active role in the society. The first word revealed in the Quran was ‘Iqra’, translating as ‘read’, showing the importance of education in our beautiful religion.
This photo is from a post by Dr. Halima Kazem on X/Twitter of two girls saying goodbye and crying as they finish 6th grade since they are no longer allowed to go to school.
How is what is happening today different from when you were a young girl?
I was six months old when my family and I became refugees in Tajikistan and then Kazakhstan. I therefore did my primary and secondary education outside of Afghanistan. However, I studied my high school and pursued my undergraduate studies in Afghanistan at the American University of Afghanistan. Sone of the best years of my life are spent in Afghanistan. I had a great life in Kabul and could pursue any goal I would set for myself: going to university, meeting friends at a café, working as an entrepreneur – the things that women and girls no longer can pursue today. Over 90,000 women were pursuing higher education. Now the number is 0. 1.1 million girls were in school, now it’s nearly 0. I remember Kabul as a vibrant city, where the youth were very passionate, entrepreneurial, with big dreams and big hopes. The youth were working day and night to reconstruct and rebuild Afghanistan. Unfortunately, now the situation is dark. The youth are losing hope for the future, half of the population is stuck at home, and people are trying to leave the country to be able to continue to breathe, to live, to study and to work. When I speak to my family and friends in Afghanistan, they say that the city has lost its spark, it’s not the same anymore.
How do families and communities view the education of girls, considering the socio-cultural and political context?
All families are worried about the current situation, it’s been more than two years that girls are no longer allowed to pursue their education above sixth grade. Families want their children in classrooms, they want their children to have a bright future, they want their children to be able to contribute to the development of the country. We need female doctors, teachers, police and we need educated women in every area of the society.
Are there grassroots initiatives or community efforts to support girls’ education despite the challenges?
Despite the challenging situation, both Afghan women in Afghanistan and in the diaspora are striving to challenge the status quo. Afghan women in Afghanistan are finding alternative means by organizing secret schools, sharing stories of hope and resilience through solidarity WhatsApp groups and going to the streets to demand their right to work and education. Teachers have turned their homes into secret schools and have turned to social media to raise awareness. There are many initiatives at the grassroots level that are filling the gap of education. Some organizations that are working on girl’s education in Afghanistan is Learn Afghanistan – which created an underground network of schools across the country. Other organizations that support include Code to Inspire, teaching employability skills such as coding to Afghan girls and then connecting them to employers in the West. Pen-Path is another local NGO that campaigns for girl’s education, by establishing schools in rural areas and the areas lacking schools. Community-based education is not banned so many international organizations, including UNESCO and the World Bank are supporting and educating girls through community-based education. All those classes are taught in homes. Contrary to the general perception of Afghan women being viewed as passive victims, we have proven to the world that we are fighters, we are not giving up, and we’re active citizens striving to change policies, challenging stereotypical narratives about Afghan women and girls.
Can you share any personal experiences or stories that highlight the struggles or successes of girls pursuing education in these circumstances?
Through my non-profit organization, Chardi, we’re trying to give hope to Afghan girls who no longer can pursue formal education. We’re providing alternative means of education, such as online public speaking courses and a pen-pal mentorship programme. Through our public speaking course, the girls are sharing their experiences with us. The Afghan girls are brave, resilient and have proven to the world that they’re not passive victims, but active changemakers. They are not giving up and strive to pursue education no matter what, despite the darkness. Here are some examples from our students:
‘’[The] Taliban took over Afghanistan on 15 August 2021. At first, I didn’t realize anything but suddenly they closed the school doors, and all the Afghan girls were disappointed about their future. When the Taliban said that they were going to open schools for girls, everyone was happy but our hearts broke when we were behind our school doors and they said no, we won’t open. All the female students were crying because of feeling bad about their studies. I was very happy, but now I am disappointed after that event happened to us. [The] Taliban destroyed Afghan girls’ futures by closing the education door. Now, we don’t even have a little bit of inspiration to dream about our future. I wanted to become a successful businesswoman, but unfortunately, the situation for me is not suitable. Like me, thousands of girls in Afghanistan have forgotten to dream. Although we don’t know how to dream anymore because the Taliban destroyed everything, I thank Chadari and Bright Future who open the door for Afghan girls to restart dreaming. I am thrilled that they gave us a chance to continue our education.’’ Barnaguhar Saboori
‘’As you know about restrictions for Women, in Afghanistan, girls can’t go to school beyond the 6th grade and women and girls have been banned from entering amusement parks and gyms. I really don’t know why Afghan girls are always to be banned from education. Why we don’t have freedom? What’s our guilt? When the Taliban took over at first, I lost my motivation and inspiration I thought life had reached its end; but, after a few months, I decided and told myself “Tooba you must never give up and you can bring change in the world.” I searched for online education and opportunities when I found the Chadari Project and I applied for its public speaking program. This program motivated and inspired me in an unbelievable manner that I can’t express in words. I learned to never allow my fears to dominate my struggles with them and shine like a diamond. A heartfelt thanks to the Chadari Project and its founder and especially, to my fabulous teacher.’’ – Tooba Islamzay
Do you know if there are female role models or leaders who are actively advocating for educational rights either in the country or in the diaspora?
All female activists and leaders both inside and outside of Afghanistan are advocating for girl’s education. This is our current fight: for our basic human right to get education. Last year, we organized the first-ever multi-stakeholder march for Afghan women and girls in collaboration with Malala Fund. We were chanting ‘We Want Education, We Want Work’ – this is the message all Afghans are amplifying since August, 2021. Some female role models who are actively advocating for educational rights include Pashtana Durrani (founder of Learn Afghanistan), Fereshteh Frough (founder of Code to Inspire), Mahbouba Seraj, a prominent women’s rights activist, who still lives in Afghanistan and advocates for reopening of schools for girls.
How do you see the limitations on girls’ education affecting the nation as a whole?
The limitations on girls’ education are not only impacting the girls, but the whole nation and the economy of Afghanistan. We need female doctors, nurses, teachers. This is especially important as we’re a traditional, gender-segregated society. It also has a negative impact on the economy, if half of the society is held back and not allowed to participate in the public sphere, we will never improve our country. In order to have a peaceful, prosperous and developed nation, we need girls back to school, we need to provide them with quality education and give them an opportunity to contribute to the development of the country and the nation as a whole.
Thank you Sveto! Here’s a wonderful TEDx video with Sveto talking about how the organization she founded—the Chadari Project –supports young girls in Afghanistan.
Happy Women’s Day!
Paula