New School Year Begins: 330,000 More Girls Deprived of Education
By Megha Mohan and Alia Farzan, translated into English by Rustam Seerat
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has told the BBC that last month, the Taliban prevented more than 330,000 girls from entering secondary education. In 2021, the Taliban government said that girls would not be allowed to continue their education after the sixth grade, when they are around 13 years old.
Zainab, 13, is one of those who did not start the new academic year in March. Zainab has been hating omelets for the past few months. The smell of frying eggs and milk reminds her of last year when she was still attending school.
Less than six months ago, she was happy.
She woke up for the morning prayer and went to school with her younger sisters and older brother. They started the new term without her, and the omelet reminds her of everything she has lost.
Zainab knew long ago that girls couldn’t attend school after the sixth grade, but she hoped for a change. She loves learning and excelled in all subjects, both in sciences and arts. As Zainab smiles with embarrassment, her father proudly says, “She could have excelled in any profession she wanted.”
Her father asks if he can…
