An Afghan girl reads the Koran in a madrasa or religious school in Kabul, Afghanistan on Oct 8, 2022.KANDAHAR — In a chilly classroom in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban movement, teenage girls pore over Islamic texts as the disembodied voice of a male scholar emanates from a loud speaker.
"Due to the closing of schools, the number of students has increased by around 40 per cent," said Mansour Muslim, who runs a madrasa mainly for teenage girls in north Kabul.One of the students at the school, 17-year-old Mursal, said she had joined three months ago."I want to finish my schooling," said Mursal, whose parents asked for her surname to be withheld to protect her privacy.
No foreign nation formally recognises the administration, with Washington citing women's rights as a major obstacle to normalising ties and unlocking much-needed funds.A spokesperson, referring to the school restrictions, said education was an internationally recognised human right and essential to Afghanistan's economic growth.
A senior teacher in her early 20s at the Taalum-ul-Islam madrasa, where Reuters was given access on condition it didn't identify students or staff to protect their privacy, said religious education gave her a sense of happiness and peace.
The secondary education ban alone has affected more than one million girls, UNICEF said in its Afghanistan annual report for 2022. The schools, which are typically single-sex, also vary in standards, strictness, the number of days and hours they're open as well as the fees they charge.
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