In pursuit of understanding and advocating for Afghan girls’ rights, as researchers and humanitarian workers, we visited several Afghan refugee families in Islamabad, Pakistan, and inquired about Afghan girls’ access to education.
Climbing to the fourth floor of a dilapidated building, we arrived at a small one-bedroom apartment with no furniture. All the family’s belongings were packed in suitcases and placed in a corner of the room.
Like parents around the world, Afghan refugee families we spoke with prioritized a bright future for their daughters. They emphasized the importance of access to quality education in their host countries. One well-educated refugee mother, a former Afghan government official, shared her perspective: “It does not matter where or how we live; all that matters is ensuring our girls receive a good education.”
The family’s decision to undertake a dangerous journey was driven by a fear of persecution but also the urgent need to secure educational opportunities for their daughters.
An 83% reduction in U.S. foreign aid has created significant gaps in humanitarian and development projects for vulnerable communities worldwide. These funding cuts have led to the loss of vital educational opportunities for Afghan refugee girls in countries like Pakistan, where girls’ education is legal, especially in urban areas like Islamabad. We need to get involved to ensure the refugee girls’ right to education.
Thoughts like “this does not concern me” or “Afghanistan is so far away” may appear in our minds, but we must understand that liberal Western universities are deeply committed to humane principles and values — ideals that champion freedom, equality and the inherent dignity of every individual.
These principles and values enable us to make a world impact. As President Joseph E. Aoun reaffirms in our mission, “to educate students for lives of fulfillment and accomplishment, and to engage in research that improves the world.”
These principles shape intellectual communities like Northeastern and guide us in our moral duty to the broader human community. In an interconnected world, the plight of Afghan girls — deprived of education under the Taliban’s repressive regime — is not just a distant tragedy but a challenge to the core values that define us. Upholding these principles involves extending our pursuit of compassion, generosity and social justice beyond national borders, ensuring that those denied their basic rights are not overlooked.
Since the Taliban took over in 2021, 1.4 million Afghan girls have been denied their fundamental right to secondary and higher education under Taliban rule. Prior to this, under the National Unity Government, or NUG, and with the presence of U.S. and North Atlantic Treaty Association, or NATO, forces, Afghan girls were granted access to higher education and enjoyed a measure of equal opportunity.
Despite intense international pressure, the Taliban regime has refused to lift the ban on girls’ education. Its persecution of ethnic minorities, restrictions on women and denial of opportunities for young girls have forced an additional 1.25 million Afghans to seek refuge in neighboring countries like Iran and Pakistan. Most of these refugee families now live in urban areas, struggling to rebuild their lives amid ongoing uncertainty.
As students at an American-based university, we may assume that once Afghan girls leave their homeland, they will access quality education. Decades of previous U.S. administrations’ commitment to provide equal opportunities to refugee populations have shaped this belief.
Nevertheless, the situation is much more complicated. Access to education for Afghan girls largely depends on the policies of the host country and the efforts of non-government organizations, or NGOs. With restrictive refugee policies and NGO funding cuts, refugees often encounter significant challenges in accessing social services in tough neighboring countries like Pakistan.
Sitting on the floor, sipping Afghan Kahwah and listening to families’ harrowing escape stories and struggles in Islamabad was profoundly unsettling. Yet, amid these hardships, the remarkable resilience of these refugee families stood out as a testament to their strength and determination.
Hope Akhtar interviewed a 13-year-old girl named Shirin (we used a pseudonym for security reasons) who studied English, science, mathematics, arts and humanities at a public school in Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, before the Taliban’s rise to power in 2021. Since then, she said that she enjoyed studying and wanted to become a human rights lawyer. However, after fleeing to Pakistan in 2022, she is now uncertain about her future.
Unfortunately, Shirin has been unable to attend any public or private school in Islamabad for the past three years, as she is unable to speak Urdu, Pakistan’s national language. While the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, and its partner organizations have set up Urdu language centers, significant barriers still prevent access for refugee families.
For example, refugee families like Shirin’s often cannot afford the transportation costs necessary to send their children to the nearest school. These centers can be located an hour from their suburban homes, making attendance logistically and financially impossible.
Furthermore, cultural norms that require girls to be accompanied for safety reasons make attendance more difficult, as both parents usually work unregistered jobs, earning a meager income equivalent of $130 per month.
Some NGOs argue that current efforts — which include online classes, focusing on language learning and social sciences — are enough. Girls like Shirin, therefore, enroll in online English classes on a makeshift basis.
However, the reality is that Afghan girls lack access to quality education in natural sciences, social sciences, mathematics and the arts. This is a critical situation. International NGOs must move beyond piecemeal, makeshift education and prioritize integrating Afghan girls into public schools or establishing comprehensive educational programs that cover all disciplines. Temporary solutions are not enough — these girls need a complete education that prepares them for the future.
This prompts an urgent question: How can we ensure that Afghan girls living in exile get the education they need, especially when schools and other educational facilities remain inaccessible?
While Western governments continue to pressure the Taliban to lift restrictions on girls’ education, they unfortunately do not back up their rhetoric with concrete programs to help Afghan refugee girls.
The timeline for Afghan girls to regain access to secondary and higher education remains uncertain. Waiting is not an option. The Northeastern community must continue the tradition of supporting Afghan girls’ education by providing a second chance for Afghan refugee girls to complete their education.
Northeastern student clubs like the International Relations Council, Northeastern Alliance of Civically Engaged Students, Ignite and Social Justice Resource Center can make a real difference by advocating and partnering with organizations working with Afghan girls’ education. Scholars at the school of law’s Center for Global Law and Justice, moreover, can explore the ways in which Afghan girls’ can have access to their fundamental rights in emerging countries like Pakistan. These girls cannot afford to wait — they need our urgent support to secure their futures.
Hope Akhtar is a first-year biochemistry major. She can be reached at [email protected]
Dr. Sheraz Akhtar teaches at Chiang Mai University in Thailand. His research focuses on the social, economic and educational development of refugee communities in emerging countries.
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