Afghanistan: Restrictions on Girls’ Education and Women’s Work “Robbing the Country of its Potential” – UNICEF Executive Director
A new UNICEF report warns that Afghanistan faces a catastrophic loss of female professionals in education and healthcare by 2030 due to ongoing bans on girls' schooling and women's employment, causing severe economic and societal damage.
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- 📰 Published: April 29, 2026 at 00:24
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[KABUL/FLORENCE/NEW YORK, 28 April 2026]
A new UNICEF analysis warns that Afghanistan risks losing up to 20,000 female teachers and 5,400 female healthcare workers by 2030 as restrictions on girls' secondary education and women's employment persist.
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According to the report "The Cost of Inaction on Girls’ Education and Women’s Labour Force Participation in Afghanistan," the share of women in the civil service dropped from 21% in 2023 to 17.7% in 2025. The report warns that the reduction in trained female professionals in schools and hospitals will have a devastating impact on children's learning, health, and future opportunities. The economic output lost due to restrictions on education and employment for girls and women is already 84 million USD per year, and this loss will increase over time if the path to education and employment remains closed.
The report emphasizes that the absence of women from education and healthcare—the two sectors where women are both permitted and needed—will lead to a decline in school attendance for girls and a deterioration of healthcare for women and children, causing direct harm to children. The impact is particularly acute in the healthcare sector. Social norms in Afghanistan often prevent women from receiving medical services from men, meaning a decrease in female healthcare workers directly restricts maternal, newborn, and child health services.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell stated: "Afghanistan cannot afford to lose the future teachers, nurses, doctors, midwives, and social workers who sustain essential services. Yet, this is what happens when girls continue to be excluded from education. We strongly urge the de facto authorities to lift the ban on girls' secondary education and call on the international community to continue supporting girls' right to learn."
Afghanistan faces a dual crisis: the loss of trained female professionals while simultaneously preventing the next generation from being trained. As experienced women retire or leave their jobs, girls are blocked from continuing their education or taking up these roles. For every year action is delayed, Afghanistan loses another generation of skilled specialists.
Since the de facto authorities banned girls from secondary education in September 2021, one million girls in Afghanistan—a country with one of the lowest female literacy rates in the world—have been denied their right to learn. According to the study, if this ban continues until 2030, more than two million girls will be deprived of their right to education beyond primary school. Schooling is already being affected, with the number of female teachers in primary education decreasing by more than 9%, from approximately 73,000 in 2022 to about 66,000 in 2024.
Despite these restrictions, UNICEF continues to support children's education in Afghanistan. In 2025, over 3.7 million children in public schools received emergency assistance. 442,000 children (66% of whom were girls) were reached through community-based learning initiatives. Additionally, 232 schools were constructed or rehabilitated.
As a new generation of girls faces the loss of learning opportunities, UNICEF continues to advocate for the restoration of girls' rights to secondary and higher education and to invest in primary education.
A new UNICEF analysis warns that Afghanistan risks losing up to 20,000 female teachers and 5,400 female healthcare workers by 2030 as restrictions on girls' secondary education and women's employment persist.
***
According to the report "The Cost of Inaction on Girls’ Education and Women’s Labour Force Participation in Afghanistan," the share of women in the civil service dropped from 21% in 2023 to 17.7% in 2025. The report warns that the reduction in trained female professionals in schools and hospitals will have a devastating impact on children's learning, health, and future opportunities. The economic output lost due to restrictions on education and employment for girls and women is already 84 million USD per year, and this loss will increase over time if the path to education and employment remains closed.
The report emphasizes that the absence of women from education and healthcare—the two sectors where women are both permitted and needed—will lead to a decline in school attendance for girls and a deterioration of healthcare for women and children, causing direct harm to children. The impact is particularly acute in the healthcare sector. Social norms in Afghanistan often prevent women from receiving medical services from men, meaning a decrease in female healthcare workers directly restricts maternal, newborn, and child health services.
UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell stated: "Afghanistan cannot afford to lose the future teachers, nurses, doctors, midwives, and social workers who sustain essential services. Yet, this is what happens when girls continue to be excluded from education. We strongly urge the de facto authorities to lift the ban on girls' secondary education and call on the international community to continue supporting girls' right to learn."
Afghanistan faces a dual crisis: the loss of trained female professionals while simultaneously preventing the next generation from being trained. As experienced women retire or leave their jobs, girls are blocked from continuing their education or taking up these roles. For every year action is delayed, Afghanistan loses another generation of skilled specialists.
Since the de facto authorities banned girls from secondary education in September 2021, one million girls in Afghanistan—a country with one of the lowest female literacy rates in the world—have been denied their right to learn. According to the study, if this ban continues until 2030, more than two million girls will be deprived of their right to education beyond primary school. Schooling is already being affected, with the number of female teachers in primary education decreasing by more than 9%, from approximately 73,000 in 2022 to about 66,000 in 2024.
Despite these restrictions, UNICEF continues to support children's education in Afghanistan. In 2025, over 3.7 million children in public schools received emergency assistance. 442,000 children (66% of whom were girls) were reached through community-based learning initiatives. Additionally, 232 schools were constructed or rehabilitated.
As a new generation of girls faces the loss of learning opportunities, UNICEF continues to advocate for the restoration of girls' rights to secondary and higher education and to invest in primary education.