UNESCO Says 2.4 Million Afghan Girls Still Barred From Secondary School
UNESCO says about 2.4 million Afghan girls are barred from secondary school under Taliban rule, leaving a generation without access to further education and opportunity.[1]
The U.N. agency made the estimate five years into Taliban rule and said Afghanistan is the only country that formally bans girls and women from both secondary and higher education.[2] UNESCO and U.N. monitors say the policies have erased decades of progress in girls' schooling since 2001, rather than merely freezing access.[2]
Five years ago the Taliban regained power and gradually tightened restrictions on girls' schooling, culminating in bans on secondary and university attendance.[2] Those shifts reversed gains in enrollment and female literacy made after 2001, leaving millions denied basic educational pathways that underpin jobs and civic life.[2]
UNESCO's estimate has renewed international concern about the long-term consequences for Afghan women and the country's future workforce.
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📌 Key Facts
- Fox News published the article Taliban wipes out decades of progress as 2.4M Afghan girls remain locked out of school, UN agency says on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, at 6:01 PM Central.
- UNESCO’s estimate that about 2.4 million Afghan girls remain excluded from secondary education is reiterated in the piece, described as occurring five years into Taliban rule.
- The article reports that Taliban policies have effectively erased decades of progress in girls’ education since 2001.
- UNESCO is quoted describing Afghanistan as the only country where girls and women are formally banned from both secondary and higher education.
- The report frames the Taliban's ban as reversing prior gains in education rather than merely freezing existing access to schooling.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Article published Tuesday, August 11, 2026, reiterates UNESCO’s estimate that about 2.4 million Afghan girls remain excluded from secondary education five years into Taliban rule.
- It emphasizes that Taliban policies have effectively erased decades of progress in girls’ education since 2001, framing the ban as reversing prior gains rather than merely freezing current access.
- The piece underscores UNESCO’s description of Afghanistan as the only country where girls and women are formally banned from both secondary and higher education, highlighting the global uniqueness of the restriction.