International Day of Education 2023: UNESCO Dedicates It To Afghan Girls, Women

Taliban's subjugation of power in Afghanistan has created a hostile environment for women to work, study, and also to breathe. Now and then several bans have been imposed concerning women's rights. At the latest, Women were banned from receiving education at private and public universities in Afghanistan. Earlier Taliban levied a ban on girls from getting secondary education, prohibited entry in parks, worst of all replaced the Women’s Ministry with the Moral Police (Ministry of Virtue and Vices).

The aforementioned bans are nothing but a tool to confiscate the freedom of women and strip them of their bright futures. No education and a constant disposition toward radical ideology might push Afghani women into darkness. To express concern over women’s condition and condemn the recent ban on women’s education in Afghanistan, UNESCO dedicates the International Day of Education 2023 to Afghan girls and women.

International Day of Education 2023

In an event at the UN headquarters, the director-general of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay said, "UNESCO will restate its plea to quickly restore the fundamental rights of Afghan women to education." UNESCO is making its efforts, however, one day is not enough to act upon the injustice that has been inflicted on Afghani women and girls. Concrete steps need to be taken to act upon the Taliban regime’s injustice toward Afghani women. Depriving females of education could be a loss for their brighter future as well as for generations coming in. Currently, under the Taliban reign about 80% of school-aged Afghan girls and young women are out of school, as they were denied access to secondary schools and universities, as per UNESCO. The deprivation of secondary education has cost the country’s economy at least USD 500 million over the past 12 months, which amounts to 2.5% of GDP, as per a UNICEF report released in August.

Education is one part of it, prohibiting women from working in the humanitarian sector is not only a personal level loss, but overall it has impacted the country. In December’s ban, women were barred from working in national and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). NGOs heavily depend on female staff, especially in the health sector. The decision has jeopardized the global campaign to eradicate polio and other health-related awareness. Over 28 million people require humanitarian aid, now it is making it difficult for NGOs to reach them. Afghanistan’s economy has been fragile; this is only going to add more.

These bans are nothing but control of the mobility of women. These restrictions only trap women and girls in the four walls of their homes, with no exposure to the outer world. Education and exposure give women the ability to ask a question and raise voices against oppression, if that ability is only taken away, the source of cause is only destroyed. Given the scenario, the women might confine to their homes, with no presence in the public sphere. 1996 Taliban’s reign took away the crucial years of gender equality, only undoing progress, and pushing where poverty thrives. Who will take responsibility for this?

Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid in defence pointed out that the ban on education is temporary, and that efforts are underway to solve them. What education or doing leisure thing is anyhow affecting the reign. The suspension of education cannot be a temporary solution to any kind of problem because it is an inherent human right. There seems no possible explanation for the Taliban’s decision. And only dedicating a day to a survivor of such a decree won’t do much good. There is also a need to ask how this day is going to help revoke the sanction. Is acknowledging only purpose, putting light on the issue the intention, or are there plans to take put the necessary pressure on the current regime?

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