Doha Forum participants call for measures to restore Afghan girls to education

"Education for Her" session confirms the imperative of working to provide learning opportunities for girls in Afghanistan (Al Jazeera)

DOHA: A number of officials and experts attributed the decision of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan to prevent girls from completing education at the post-sixth grade stage to political reasons rather than any religious reasons, arguing that Islam urged the obligation to learn, and did not deny women the freedom of education.

During the first day of the Doha Forum, the experts pointed out that the Taliban fears the involvement of women in political work, and that there are shortcomings that must be resolved in the relationship between men and women in Afghanistan, the most important of which is the need for dialogue with the leaders of the government in the country and men in general, and to convince them that women's education is not an obstacle to the development of the country, and that it is a participatory and cooperative relationship between the two parties, calling for the importance of dialogue with the Taliban, which has solutions to this problem.

In the session "Education for her: progress for all: rebuilding education for women in Afghanistan", the experts explained that work must be done to open spaces for girls in Afghanistan to obtain education, stressing that it is their obligation and not just a right, and Afghan society must be helped to open up and keep pace with the developments of the times, and this will only be done by obtaining women, who represent half of society, to education.

They confirmed – in statements to Al Jazeera Net – that there are a number of solutions that are currently being applied, including electronic platforms or virtual schools, as well as relying on education in mosques to face the decision to prevent girls from continuing their education.

Rina Amiri: Half of the Afghan population is deprived of learning and working opportunities (Al Jazeera)

Denial of education and work

Rena Amiri, Special Envoy for Afghan Women, Girls and Human Rights at the US State Department, said the situation in Afghanistan after two years of Taliban rule again is no better, explaining that it is necessary to highlight how to manage the conflict in the country first, and then look for reopening educational opportunities.

She added – in her speech to Al Jazeera Net – that more than 3 million girls of school age after primary school did not get the opportunity to learn, but given the situation in general, it can be said with certainty that almost half of society, namely women, "deprived of opportunities to learn, work and participate in political work."

On future plans to deal with the current situation, Amiri said that there are a number of solutions that are being focused on, including the establishment of a platform for Afghan women to be a source of learning and work virtually.

The US official added that there are already channels of communication with the Taliban "and we have conveyed to them a clear and explicit message that there will be no normalization of relations or a return to normal relations, unless there are developments on the ground in many matters, foremost of which is women's education, work and participation in political life."

Ranjina Hammadi: Taliban prevention of girls from education has nothing to do with religion (Al Jazeera)

Between religion and politics

For her part, former Minister of Education in Afghanistan Ranjina Hammadi said that the situation in the country has changed a lot in recent years and girls have lost not only their opportunity to learn, but perhaps their chance to freedom and life, explaining that the Taliban have narrowed opportunities for women who are unable to shape their future.

She considered – in special statements to Al Jazeera Net – that the Taliban's prevention of girls from education "has nothing to do with the Islamic religion, but it is political in the first place," explaining that the people in Afghanistan do not oppose education at all for boys and girls, adding, "There may be different opinions in the way of learning, but the dispute over education in the basis is something that does not exist at all."

Ranjina pointed out that only the Taliban can answer why girls are prevented from education at this age, as they are prevented from completing school after the sixth grade, but "what we can confirm is that the reason is not religious at all."

She explained that there are different ways that the Afghan people can already resort to to close the education gap for girls in particular, including mosques that provide education up to a certain age, as well as resorting to some virtual educational platforms on the Internet, which is available to a very small minority in the country who have access to the Internet, electricity, and study programs in some of the few educational centers there.

She pointed out that Afghanistan has been a Muslim country for more than 1200,<> years, so the issue of the spread of mosques and religious centers is familiar and not a new phenomenon, and the Taliban cannot oppose it, but facilities that have also become very limited, and many do not go to them for fear of the Taliban.

Roya Mahboub: Concerted efforts are needed to provide alternative routes to traditional girls' schools in Afghanistan (Al Jazeera)

Virtual Schools

In turn, Roya Mahboub, CEO and founder of the Digital Citizen Fund, said that the current lag behind in education, especially in light of the development we are witnessing that includes artificial intelligence and many developments, will make Afghanistan after a decade in a clear backwardness and decline, as the world will be in a completely different situation and cannot be easily catched, and therefore efforts must be concerted and Afghan women must be supported to continue their education by providing alternative methods to traditional schools.

Mahboub added – in statements to Al Jazeera Net – that more than 65% of the Afghan people are under the age of 25, a percentage that indicates the vitality and youth of the state, which is a positive thing that must be built and worked on to exploit it through quality education for the young generation capable of making the future.

Mahboub, who has left Afghanistan since 2004 and is currently working from New York, where she founded the Special Digital Fund, said the situation in Afghanistan is very catastrophic and devastating, and there are many dangers surrounding the people, so if there is a desire from the rulers there to advance the country, they must open their ears to others and work together for a common future.

She revealed that she plans to launch an electronic platform for girls' education in the form of virtual schools, starting from seventh to 12th grades, to fill the gap in girls' education, noting that it is expected to be officially launched next March.

Ghulam Omar Ghulam Gargha, a fellow at the Center for Global Education at the Brookings Institution, said there are millions of girls without an education in Afghanistan, and out-of-the-box solutions must be worked on to overcome this problem and try to help them in a way that enables them to achieve their goals of learning and the opportunity to participate in life without marginalization.

No one has the solutions to impose on the Taliban, he said, which can only develop solutions to this problem, listen to the voices of the whole world, open the way for women to participate in politics and not be left behind in development and progress.

Source : Al Jazeera