In a fresh blow to Afghanistan’s already fragile education system, the Taliban authorities have ordered the closure of over 400 community-based education classes in Ghazni province, run under the supervision of UNICEF. The move has left more than 12,000 out-of-school children—both boys and girls—without access to learning and rendered over 1,000 teachers and community workers jobless.
These classes had been a lifeline for children in remote areas with no access to formal schooling. Operated through UNICEF’s local partner organizations, they were part of a broader humanitarian initiative designed to ensure continuity of education under difficult conditions. Despite UNICEF’s commitment to fund the program for the next three years, the Taliban’s Ministry of Education—acting on direct orders from the group’s supreme leader, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada—refused to permit its continuation.
The shutdown comes on the heels of similar closures in Paktika and Logar provinces, suggesting a growing campaign by the Taliban to dismantle community-based educational programs that often serve girls and marginalized populations.
Local tribal elders, who attempted to intervene by traveling to Kandahar, were told that even regional Taliban officials lacked the authority to overturn the decision. In a chilling audio message, Ghazni’s Directorate of Education warned elders against traveling to Kabul to seek restoration of the classes and instructed government-linked departments not to engage with such efforts.
The Taliban’s latest action adds to mounting international concern over the regime’s systematic suppression of education—particularly for girls. Since seizing power in August 2021, the Taliban has banned girls from attending secondary schools and universities, making Afghanistan the only country in the world with such restrictions in place.
On Wednesday, Taliban officials began removing educational materials from the shuttered class centers, signaling a decisive end to what had been a rare educational opportunity in the province.
With these closures, the Taliban regime continues to sabotage humanitarian and development efforts, deepening Afghanistan’s isolation and reversing decades of progress in education and gender rights.
