As International Day of the Girl is marked, Afghan girls face five years without education
As International Day of the Girl arrives, girls in Afghanistan have now been denied education for five years, with educational deprivation and social restrictions severely challenging their personal development, employment and social participation, UNESCO said.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP) in Afghanistan said in a statement that Afghanistan’s future depends on the opportunities provided to girls today. The agency stressed investment in girls’ education, skills training and health, saying strengthening these areas can help build community resilience.
In a separate message, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) called for ending child marriage and investing in the realisation of girls’ rights. Warning about the consequences of pregnancy at a young age, the agency stressed timely access to health services and maternal care.
The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), stressing that girls have the right to education and to build their future freely, said poverty, early marriage, limited access to education and illiteracy are among the main challenges. UNESCO also said Afghan girls have been barred for a fifth consecutive year from continuing their education beyond primary school, and called for practical action to secure their right to education, decent work and individual choices.
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai also said in a message on the occasion of the day that society has a responsibility to empower girls alongside boys. He expressed hope that the doors of schools and universities would reopen to girls as soon as possible so they can serve their people and country by gaining knowledge and skills.
International Day of the Girl is marked every year to draw attention to girls’ rights and the barriers they face in education, health and social participation, an issue that in Afghanistan has become one of the most contentious social and rights challenges as secondary schools remain closed to girls.
