One Year After the U.S Withdrawal: A Situation Analysis of Girls’ Post-Secondary Education in Afghanistan

• In Event: Education for Equity

Proposal

There is now the recognition that sustainable economic development cannot be effective if half of the population (women) remain marginalized and uneducated, especially in developing countries (Bolivia, 2010). Through education, women are provided with skills and knowledge that will enhance their socio-economic, cultural and social lives, which in turn contribute to the sustainable development of a country (Julal & Sardjunami, 2006). Obtaining post-secondary education is even more important; it provides opportunities for women to acquire advanced knowledge and skills that can result in increased employment opportunities and decreased poverty.

Women over the years have had limited access to educational opportunities and this has hindered their contribution to national development in Afghanistan. While women’s access to post-secondary education in Afghanistan had considerably improved over the last two decades, the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August 2021 rolled back these achievements. Public universities in Afghanistan were closed for over 6 months for both men and women. Initially, the Taliban enforced in-classroom segregation for boys and girls. Then, they moved to further segregation by assigning morning shift for boys and afternoon shift for girls, but they found it difficult to completely segregate. Later on, in order to enforce their own version of gender segregation, the Taliban assigned different weekdays for boys and girls to attend universities. It is uncertain what other restrictions they will impose in the future.

While universities opened for both boys and girls in February 2022, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools and institutes have remained closed for girls. There has been varying and shifting reasoning by the Taliban officials on restricting education for women and girls including a consistent Taliban policy against co-education, objecting to the already existing curriculum, cultural norms, disunity of perspective among various Taliban groups and Taliban scholars. This ideology of the Taliban has created an uncertainty and policy confusion for women to navigate their educational and career pathways in Afghanistan. During the Taliban era in the 1990s, women were denied education at all levels for the entire 5-year period of the government. People fear such a thing will happen again, despite the many pledges that the Taliban have made to give girls access to education. Their fears are true because despite many promises, middle school, high school, and TVET have remained closed since August 2021. High school closure and Taliban’s reluctance to conduct entrance exam for universities may mean the end of public higher education for girls in Afghanistan.

To analyze this unfolding situation, we are conducting a situation analysis to answer the following questions. How has the U.S withdrawal affected women’s access to post-secondary education in Afghanistan? How has the withdrawal affected educational and career aspirations of girls attending post-secondary education institutions. To answer the first question, we are using situational analysis, which is a qualitative research methodology based on grounded theory to analyze this situation (Clark, 2018; Mathar, 2008). Specifically, we are using Clark’s (2018) 3-step mapping of the situation. In order to give spatial and temporal boundaries to the situation (Clark, 2005), we will analyze the data produced between August 15, 2021, and August 15, 2022, which is the first year of the new Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan. Our data sources are local and international newspapers, social media, websites, and videos of interviews and conversations. To make data collection feasible and focused, we have chosen three prominent Afghanistan-based newspapers, and three international newspapers that publish frequently about Afghanistan, the website of the Ministry of Higher Education of Afghanistan, website and social media pages of some Afghan universities, blogs, and TV interviews/news from two Afghanistan-based independent TV stations. For the second question, we will interview female students of the technical and vocational schools and institutes who have not been able to return to school yet.

The gathered data will be analyzed to find the effects of the Taliban government on limiting access to post-secondary education for women. In addition, we will also analyze the reasonings of the Taliban for the decisions they make in this regard and what ideologies they base their reasons on. This study will reveal the Taliban’s idealism and how their extreme ideologies create education barriers for women, half of the population of Afghanistan, and rapidly reverse the achievements made in the last two decades in Afghanistan. The findings will also show gendered inequities in education in Afghanistan ruled by the Taliban.

Author

• Nangyalai Attal, University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst)