29.07.2008 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

According to Afghan Education Ministry, more than 70 teachers and students killed and at least 62 schools torched since school year began in March; Taliban insurgents increase attacks on 'soft targets' ("School's Out") [ID 24221]

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

In 2007, terrorist attacks killed 140 teachers and students ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23797]

"The Ministry of Education (MOE) reported that terrorist and insurgent attacks killed a total of 140 teachers, students, or other school employees during the year. Investigations occurred in some cases, but the outcomes were unclear at the end of the year."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Members of some indigenous minority groups (Sikhs, Hindus) operated private schools to avoid harassment and to provide religious and cultural education ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23986]

"Public school curricula continued to include Islamic content but no content from other religious groups. Non-Muslims were not required to study Islam, and there were no restrictions on parental religious teaching. Members of some indigenous minority groups, such as the Sikhs, operated private schools to avoid harassment and to provide religious and cultural education to their community. In July the MOE opened a school for local Sikh and Hindu children in Ghazni Province."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Discrimination of non-Muslims in schools; Sikh and Hindu students prevented from enrolling in some schools and others stopped attending due to harassment; government did not implement measures to protect these children ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24001]

"Non-Muslims faced discrimination in schools. The AIHRC continued to receive reports that students belonging to the Sikh and Hindu faiths were prevented from enrolling in some schools and others stopped attending due to harassment from both teachers and students. The government did not implement measures to protect these children but did open the first government-sponsored school for Sikh and Hindu children in Ghazni Province. In both Jalalabad and Kabul, the community representatives expressed concerns that they would not be able to accommodate returning families. While Hindus and Sikhs had recourse to dispute resolution mechanisms such as the Special Land and Property Court, in practice the community felt unprotected. Although Hindus reported being harassed by neighbors in their communities, there were no known reports of discrimination against Hindus by the government."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Data on education and attendance at school in 2007 ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24104]

"The law makes education mandatory up to the secondary level and provides for free education up to the college level. According to the MOE there were 9,033 basic and secondary schools. Local authorities made some progress in school attendance. A back-to-school campaign launched by the MOE increased school enrollment from 4.2 million children in 2003 to more than 5.4 million, according to UNICEF. During the year UNICEF estimated that more than two million children (approximately 54 percent) were out of school, including 1.3 million girls. According to figures from the MOE, approximately 40 percent of teachers were professionally accredited."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Enrolment of girls in schools has increased; however, in most of the provinces the attendance of girls at school remained low ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24105]

"In most of the country the enrollment of girls in schools may have increased, in some places significantly. However, nearly one-third of districts and several provinces had no schools for girls to attend. Enrollment was as low as 15 percent in some areas. Even in secure areas such as Kabul, where access to schools was not an issue, some male family members did not allow girls to attend school. In most regions boys and girls attended primary classes together but were separated for intermediate- and high school-level education."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Girls often stop attending school at the age of 12 or 13 due to a lack of female teachers; their families do not allow them to be taught by adult men ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24106]

"According to the UN, schools continued struggling with high dropout rates and serious shortages of teachers, especially female teachers. The MOE reported that, on average, girls in cities stopped attending school after completing high school and, in the villages, girls stopped attending school at the age of 12 or 13 in part because there was a lack of female teachers and families did not allow their teenage girls to be taught by adult men."

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11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Violence continued to impede access to education in some parts of the country; most of the school-related violence occurred in 11 provinces in the southern and border regions ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24107]

"Violence continued to impede access to education in some parts of the country where Taliban and other extremists threatened or physically attacked schools, officials, teachers, and students, especially in girls' schools. Where schools did remain open, parents were often afraid to send their children to school, particularly girls. The majority of school-related violence occurred in 11 provinces in the southern and border regions. The MOE reported that more than 300 schools were attacked during the year and a total of nearly 200 schools had been closed due to attacks, preventing almost 220,000 students from receiving an education. For example, in Helmand Province 30,000 fewer students attended schools and more than 100 schools remain closed due to insecurity."

Document(s): Open document

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

According to HRW, attacks by Taliban and other insurgents against schools sometimes led to the closing of all schools in an entire district ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 24108]

"According to an HRW report on school attacks, there were entire districts where attacks by Taliban and other insurgents led to the closing of all schools. Education officials stated that attacks averaged one school per day. Even more common were threatening "night letters," distributed alone or preceding actual attacks, in mosques, around schools, and on routes taken by students and teachers, warning them against attending school and making credible threats of violence. Physical attacks or threats against schools and their staff caused schools to close, either because the building was destroyed or because the teachers and students were too afraid to attend. Schools in the surrounding area frequently shut down as well. In areas where students did attend school, the quality of education was extremely low."

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12.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Attacks on over 200 schools; 20.000 students were affected by school closure throughout the country ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Afghan Asylum-Seekers") [ID 22556]

"The right to education has been undermined particularly in districts of Hilmand, Kandahar, Zabul, Uruzgan, Paktika, parts of Ghazni, Khost, Paktia and Kunar as attacks have caused the closure of schools and driven out teachers and NGOs providing education. Over 200 schools were burnt, attacked or partially destroyed and 200,000 students were affected by school closure throughout the country. These attacks were characterized by Human Rights Watch as constituting war crimes on the basis of defying the law of armed conflict by targeting civilians and civilians’ establishments."

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12.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Despite progresses in the realization of gender equality, women and girls continue to suffer from low social, economic and political status; only 12,6 percent of women are literate and school attendance of girls dropped due to attacks on schools ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Afghan Asylum-Seekers") [ID 22664]

"Progress in the realization of gender equality remains, however, an uphill struggle as legal and social discrimination are deep-rooted, insecurity grows, and customary practices prevail. Afghan women and girls continue to suffer extremely low social, economic and political status. Chronically poor women are one of the most vulnerable groups in Afghanistan. Due to the culture and tradition, some means of social intervention (e.g. training, education, etc.) to support vulnerable women prove to be very difficult. Despite tremendous progress, the gender gap remains high. Only 12.6 percent of female adults are literate and a very small percentage of them is employed. Afghan women rank among the world’s worst off group by significant human development indicators: life expectancy is 42 years; maternal mortality as high as 1,600 deaths per 100,000 births; and literacy is as low as 14 percent for women 15 and older. While the number of girls in school increased quickly after the fall of the Taliban in 2001, only 37 percent of school-age girls were in school in 2006, as the violence directed at schools in 2005 and 2006 affected school attendance by girls particularly hard."

Document(s): Open document

12.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Literacy rate is estimated at 28 percent; despite the success of the UNICEF “Back to School” campaign (started in 2002), an estimated 2 million children (therefrom 1.2 million girls) are currently not attending school ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Afghan Asylum-Seekers") [ID 22749]

"Afghanistan’s literacy rate is one of the lowest among developing countries. The average adult literacy rate is estimated at 28 percent of the overall population; female literacy rate is 12.6 percent. The Taliban exclusion of girls from school during 1995-2001 worsened the gender disparity in literacy. The UNICEF “Back to School” campaign – started in 2002 – has seen more than three million students return to school and enrolment in schools has continuously increased. Currently, 5.1 million children are attending schools. Of this number, about 4.5 million children are in primary school (1.53 million of them are girls). Thirty-seven percent of girls between the ages of 7 and 12 are attending school for the first time. Despite the relative success of the “Back to School” campaign, an estimated 2 million children are currently not attending school; 1.2 million of these are girls."

Document(s): Open document

12.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Negative parental attitudes and security concerns are the main reasons for low school attendance rates of girls; lack of qualified female teachers ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Afghan Asylum-Seekers") [ID 22750]

"The main causes of low attendance rates for girls are the inadequate number of formal schools or qualified teachers, the lack of physical accessibility of schools due to security concerns (e.g. attacks or abductions) and negative parental attitudes regarding girls’ education. In addition, early marriage is a significant factor in the high drop-out rates for girls. An AIHRC study has found that the proportion of girls who fail to complete primary education is almost half the rate of boys’ completion. To address one of the obstacles to girls’ school attendance, the Ministry of Education is training a pool of female teachers and is offering land and housing incentives for deployment of female teachers to areas in which there is a lack of qualified female teachers."

Document(s): Open document

12.2007 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Deteriorating security due to the insurgency, especially in the south, southeast and east of the country, affects education system; in 2006, over 200 schools have been burned and 400 schools have been closed; 15 teachers were killed ("UNHCR's Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International Protection Needs of Afghan Asylum-Seekers") [ID 22751]

"As mentioned above, the education system has also faced setbacks as a result of the deteriorating security due to the insurgency, especially in the south, southeast and east of the country. Over 200 schools have been burned and around 400 schools have been closed during 2006. Furthermore, at least 15 teachers were killed due to the insurgency-linked violence throughout the country."

Document(s): Open document

11.2007 - Source: Austrian Centre for Country of Origin and Asylum Research and Documentation

Threats and attacks on female teachers, girl’s schools and on families who send their girls to school ("11th European Country of Origin Information Seminar; Vienna, 21 - 22 June 2007; Country Report; Afghanistan") [ID 21959]

"Due to security situation, schools remain inaccessible in many parts of the country. There are continuous threats and attacks on female teachers, girl’s schools and on families who send their girls to school. In a Tajik valley at a 30 minutes distance from Kabul, no girl is allowed to attend school."

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09.02.2007 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Effort to get boys and girls back into schools fails; pupils, teachers and headmasters threatened with death if they keep schools open or attend classes ("Schools Face Murderous Challenge") [ID 18789]

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19.01.2007 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Rising tide of arson attacks on schools all over the country; government enlists public's help to safeguard children ("Neighbourhood Watch for Afghan Schools") [ID 18479]

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24.03.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

According to UNICEF, half of girls are not attending school because their parents fear for their safety; at least 30 attacks on schools in past 6 months ("Fear Keeps Half Of Afghan Girls Out Of School") [#47415],  [ID 1325]

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05.11.2003 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Due to a law from the mid-70s banning married women from the classroom, thousands of young Afghan women have been expelled from school ("Wives Face School Ban") [#17459],  [ID 1334]

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25.08.2003 - Source: ReliefWeb

Two years after the fall of the Taliban regime, women still face restrictions; no free education, poor healthcare situation ("For Afghan women: new regime, centuries-old barriers") [#15581],  [ID 1339]

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23.06.2003 - Source: Amnesty International

Secondary schools for girls are limited, especially in rural areas ("Out of sight, out of mind: The fate of the Afghan returnees") [#13706],  [ID 1341]

"Lack of access to education constitutes a serious obstacle to sustainable return. Several of the returnee children interviewed by Amnesty International had only limited access to education. While some informally settled families have been able to secure educational opportunities for their children, not one child in an informal tented settlement in Kabul comprised of 75 families was receiving formal education. Children are often denied access to education because they are required to supplement the meager income of their family through employment. Mirza Ahmed’s eight children, who live with him in Kabul city following their return from Quetta, do not go to school. Instead they wash cars, sell plastic bags and trinkets in the street or work as manual labourers to earn money for their family.
Secondary schools for girls are limited, especially in rural areas. Girls living with their families in a ruined building in western Kabul were unable to continue the education they had started to receive while in exile. Saida’s two teenage daughters, living in their newly rebuilt house in the Shomali valley after their return from Iran, told us that they could not go to school, as their father believed that it was unsafe for them to walk to the nearest secondary school some kilometers away.
Ironically, the desire to ensure an education for their children is cited as one of the main reasons for many refugees to return to Afghanistan from Iran."

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12.07.2002 - Source: UN Human Rights Council (formerly UN Commission on Human Rights)

UN Secretary-General: Continuing restrictions on education and pervasive insecurity for female students ("Report of the Secretary-General on the situation of women and girls in the territories occupied by Afghan armed groups (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/27)") [#8325],  [ID 1351]

"18. The overthrow of the Taliban opens up new opportunities for increasing gender equity and promoting the positive development of girls. Schools re-opened in Afghanistan on 23 March 2002, six years after girls had last been allowed to attend school and women had last been allowed to teach. For the first time in five years, women in Afghanistan took university examinations. In Kabul, 500 of the 3,000 people who took university entrance examinations were women. The educational system, though it is beginning to be restored, is still not fully accessible to all who need it. According to reports, there are continuing restrictions on education and pervasive insecurity for female students. It was reported that female students felt unsafe walking along the streets, out of fear of the presence of gunmen and soldiers, who were reportedly all Taliban. Books printed by the interim government were allegedly not being provided to teachers to distribute among students, so they were compelled to teach the curriculum published by the Taliban. Teachers also reported that the head of a provincial education department appointed by the Kabul authorities had been rejected and threatened with death if he tried to occupy his position. […]"

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12.07.2002 - Source: UN Human Rights Council (formerly UN Commission on Human Rights)

UN Secretary-General: From the age of 10 onward, girls are often withdrawn from co-educational activities ("Report of the Secretary-General on the situation of women and girls in the territories occupied by Afghan armed groups (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/27)") [#8325],  [ID 1352]

"20. Discrimination against girls has deep cultural and historic roots and continues to be strong, particularly in rural villages. Often girls do not walk beyond the village and lack the access to health and educational services that boys enjoy. Among disabled children, who, in addition to the loss of limbs and disfigurement face stigmatization and limited access to school and social services, girls are more at a disadvantage than boys. Throughout Afghanistan girl children are considered “guardians of the family honour”. Therefore, daughters are frequently closely protected and their public activities restricted. From the age of 10 onward, girls are often withdrawn from co-educational activities and restricted to domestic duties. During the period before marriage, many girls are kept in purdah, confined to their houses as a means of ensuring their purity."

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Archive.pdf