The United Nations International Education Day, January 24 (Prensa Latina), today calls for women and girls in Afghanistan to have access to this right, considered a priority to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
The date, to be held at the headquarters of the United Nations (UN) organization with the participation of Unesco, requires maintaining strong political mobilization in the field of education and charting the way to translate global commitments and initiatives into action.
The day, chaired by UN Secretary-General António Guterres and UNESCO Director Audrey Azoulay, therefore focuses on the situation of Afghans after the Taliban took power.
A report released by both institutions recognizes the context in Afghanistan as one of the most difficult crises today, particularly due to the deprivation of classroom access.
Since the political changes in Kabul in August 2021, education beyond primary school has been suspended indefinitely for all Afghans aged 12 and over.
That means 80 percent (2.5 million) of school-age minors and adolescents have no access to schools, while nearly 30 percent of girls have never had a primary education, UNESCO estimates.
The recent decision to suspend women’s access to universities until further notice has affected more than 100,000 students who attended college, jeopardizing the gains made over the past twenty years.
Before these bans, one in three young women was enrolled in universities, and the number of entrants increased nearly 20-fold.
According to the UN, education must be a priority to accelerate progress towards all Sustainable Development Goals in the context of a global recession, rising inequalities and the climate crisis.