Afghan Fathers Confront Despair Over Taliban Ban on Girls’ Secondary Education
According to reports by Agence France-Presse (AFP) and Radio France Internationale (RFI), Afghan fathers are experiencing sleepless nights and hidden tears as they struggle to find educational solutions for their teenage daughters, who remain barred from secondary schools by the Taliban government. Five fathers recently spoke with AFP under conditions of anonymity to describe the psychological toll of the restrictions, which have impacted at least one million girls over the past four years, according to United Nations data.
Afghanistan remains the only country in the world where female education is officially banned past the primary level. Following their return to power, the Taliban excluded girls from secondary schools and universities in 2022. While some administration officials have characterized the ban as temporary, families face an ongoing crisis as years pass without policy changes. United Nations data highlights the scale of the disruption for female students across the country.
The Battle Against Religious Justifications for Educational Restrictions
Although Taliban authorities claim their policies align with Islamic law, the interviewed fathers—all practicing Muslims—strongly reject this religious rationale. Mohammad, a 42-year-old doctor from the Kabul province, stated in the AFP report that no passage in the Quran restricts education exclusively to men. This perspective aligns with broader public sentiment captured in a 2025 survey by UN Women, which revealed that 95 percent of urban Afghan men and 87 percent in rural areas view secondary education for girls as important.
Fathers are increasingly exploring covert methods to keep their daughters learning, despite significant financial and legal risks. Mohammad enrolled two of his daughters in an underground private school that charges about 150 dollars per month. The facility operates without official state accreditation, meaning students receive no formal diplomas and face the constant threat of inspection and detention by authorities.
Financial Strain and Failed Exile Attempts
For many families, emigration represents the only permanent escape from educational deprivation, yet legal pathways remain exceptionally narrow. Ahmad, a 40-year-old engineer and former international organization employee, applied for visas in Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and the United States to secure a future for his four daughters. Most European nations have granted very few visas to Afghan applicants despite condemning the restrictions, and plans for relocation to the U.S. stalled after the Trump administration froze pending petitions, according to AFP.
With online courses costing roughly 1,500 dollars annually—a prohibitive sum when weighed against average local wages—parents rely on home instruction and smuggled textbooks. Nassir, a 47-year-old administrative worker, maintains a strict academic discipline at home with his daughters, utilizing recovered secondary school books and providing novels to combat the depression brought on by social isolation and academic exclusion.