For decades, education for women in Afghanistan has been a story of progress interrupted. In earlier generations, Afghan women studied and worked as doctors, teachers, engineers, and civil servants, building lives and careers alongside their male counterparts. Over the past two decades, a new generation of girls grew up with access to schools and universities, many becoming the first women in their families to pursue higher education, and with it, hope for a different future.
That progress has now been reversed. Since restrictions on women’s education were reimposed, schools and universities that once welcomed female students have closed their doors to them. Girls beyond primary school age have been barred from classrooms, and young women who were partway through their degrees have seen their studies halted indefinitely. An entire generation of girls now faces the risk of losing not only their education, but the dreams and opportunities that came with it.
Yet the desire to learn has not disappeared, it has simply had to find a new path. As access to in-person education became increasingly difficult, many young Afghan women turned to the internet in search of learning opportunities and international education. A strong command of English became essential to accessing these opportunities, whether to apply for scholarships, take online university courses, or connect with the wider world. We began receiving numerous requests from young women asking us to help them learn English. Given the impossibility of organizing in-person classes in the current environment, Women for Change International made the decision to bring these classes online, meeting students where they were: at home, on whatever device they had, learning in secret if they had to.
Women for Change International seeks to advocate and work in the preservation of the human rights of all women and girls.
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