Afghanistan Peace Campaign
In 2025, Afghanistan women and girls faced widespread exclusion from education and work, worsening poverty, limiting economic growth, and threatening long-term social development.
Recent reports by the United Nations and international organisations show that in 2025, women and girls in Afghanistan continued to face sweeping restrictions on education, employment, and social life. These limitations have had deep economic and social consequences, even as many Afghans hope schools and universities might reopen to women in 2026.
According to the United Nations Development Programme’s 2025 report, more than 90 percent of Afghanistan women were excluded from employment opportunities, with only about 7 percent engaged in economic activity outside their homes during the past year. These restrictions have weakened household incomes and undermined the country’s prospects for sustainable development.
The UN Security Council’s Monitoring Team described the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan as “grave” in its annual assessment. UNICEF’s “Afghanistan Gender Index 2025” found that eight out of ten Afghanistan women remain deprived of education and work, placing Afghanistan among the countries with the world’s widest gender gaps. Estimates suggest these exclusions cost the Afghanistan economy more than one billion dollars annually.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) also warned that restrictions on women’s access to medical professions and healthcare services are directly affecting daily life. In Kandahar, UNAMA reported that local authorities instructed male dentists not to treat female patients, requiring clinics to employ female doctors instead. These policies have reduced women’s access to healthcare and increased pressure on families and communities.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) identified the systematic exclusion of women and girls from public life as a key driver of Afghanistan’s worsening humanitarian crisis. OCHA said the restrictions have heightened protection risks, including gender-based violence, child labour, and early and forced marriages.
Research published in 2025 by Georgetown University ranked Afghanistan as the worst country in the world for women out of 188 nations. The index, based on participation, justice, and security, found Afghan women at the lowest global levels of safety and access to justice, noting that one in five women experienced violence at home in the past year.
The widespread exclusion of women from education and work has produced severe social and economic fallout. Reduced female participation in the workforce has shrunk family incomes and national productivity, while denying education to girls threatens to entrench long-term inequality across future generations.
Reports confirm that in 2025 Afghanistan remained the only country in the world where girls above sixth grade were barred from schooling solely because of their gender. Experts warn that if this policy continues, it will cause lasting damage to human development, deepen poverty, and widen gender disparities for decades.
International analysts stress that empowering women and enabling their participation in public life is not only a fundamental human right but also essential for sustainable development and poverty reduction. Reopening schools and universities to women could bring significant benefits to health outcomes, economic growth, and social stability.
Following the political changes of 2021, women and girls in Afghanistan were barred from education and many forms of employment “until further notice,” a suspension that has now lasted for years. Despite repeated international appeals, authorities have so far offered no clear timeline or policy shift on restoring these rights.
Before these restrictions, women faced challenges but were still able to participate in education and the workforce. UN and international reports consistently conclude that restoring women’s access to schools, universities, and jobs would play a crucial role in reducing poverty, improving security, and supporting Afghanistan’s long-term development.