Updated

UNESCO warned that Afghanistan could lose a generation of professionals if the Taliban's ban on girls' education continues, Voice of America reported on 10 November 2026. Hoda Jaberian, UNESCO Program Coordinator for Education in Emergencies, told Voice of America that Afghanistan risks losing future teachers, healthcare professionals and other skilled workers if girls and women stay barred from secondary and higher education. A UN report released in November said the ban has excluded an estimated 2.4 million girls from secondary education, and no girls have enrolled in universities in 2026. The Taliban banned girls from secondary education after seizing power in 2021, barred women from universities in December 2022, and barred them from medical institutions in December 2024. Jaberian said reopening schools for girls is the first priority and that no alternative learning can replace their formal schooling, while also calling for learning opportunities for excluded children and young people and better teaching materials, teacher support and education data. The article also describes wider Taliban restrictions on women, including bans on working in government agencies and non-government organizations, visiting public parks, beauty salons and gyms, and travelling long distances without a close male relative, and says the group has issued more than 100 decrees curbing women's and girls' rights.