High Stakes

Progress in girls’ education, one of the rare Afghan success stories of the last nine years and vital to the long-term development and stability of the country is under threat. While millions of girls enrolled in school after the fall of the Taliban, donor and government efforts to improve education have slowed down and growing insecurity is rapidly eroding access to schooling for many girls. A new approach from both the Afghan government and donors is urgently required to hold onto the gains that have been made.

High Stakes, a report by Oxfam and 15 other aid organizations, finds that gains in girls’ education are slipping away as a result of poverty, growing insecurity, a lack of trained teachers, neglect of post-primary education, and poorly equipped schools. The findings are based on a survey of more than 1,600 girls, parents, and teachers in 17 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces.