The Taliban, by excluding women and girls from the education system and systematically removing female professors from universities, are attempting to marginalize women’s academic capacity. According to several university professors in the country, this trend not only signifies the end of employment for hundreds of elite women but also represents a clear symbol of hostility toward knowledge, expertise, and the future of education in Afghanistan. The Taliban’s Ministry of Higher Education, under the pretext of downsizing, has dismissed the majority of female professors from universities. Academic sources state that this action is not based on academic needs or educational necessities but stems from the Taliban’s ideological and discriminatory approach toward women and higher education. Former university professors say that, in addition to facing severe economic and psychological challenges, they are overwhelmed by feelings of humiliation and diminished social status. They emphasize that due to the widespread deprivation of women from job opportunities, they are unable to provide for their families’ livelihoods and have been silently forgotten.
Several female professors who have been subjected to post-reduction by the Taliban’s Ministry of Higher Education say that, alongside increasing economic difficulties, their dreams have been shattered, their social status has declined, and they feel a sense of futility. These professors stress that most of them are grappling with severe mental and psychological issues. According to them, the fruits of years of academic and professional effort have been destroyed overnight, and they now feel utterly devastated.
Aasoo (pseudonym), who taught sociology at one of the country’s universities for seven years, says that the post reduction has had a profoundly negative impact on her life. She adds that she was in the process of writing a scholarly dissertation for a promotion in rank, but the Taliban’s decision has completely ruined her and left her academic advancement incomplete.
This university professor says that the 5,000 Afghanis previously paid by the Taliban to female professors at least partially alleviated her problems. However, the cessation of this amount has added to her financial troubles and made enduring the situation even more difficult.
Aasoo adds: “Being deprived of a university position has driven all my aspirations to a dead end; I worked tirelessly to achieve the status of a university professor and succeeded through great effort among competitors. Today, I am suffering from psychological issues and have even spent some time bedridden. This pain will never fade from my mind.”
Negina, a former professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at one of Afghanistan’s public universities, worked as a professor for eight years after graduating and hoped to serve her country through her efforts. However, following the issuance of a ban on women’s education and teaching, she was confined to her home. Still, she held hope of returning to the university one day—a hope that collapsed with the announcement of her post reduction.
This former university professor says that the post-reduction dealt a significant blow to her personal and professional life. According to her, losing her job not only meant the loss of her primary source of income but also caused her to lose her identity and sense of usefulness in society. She also emphasizes that, financially, the lack of income and limited suitable job opportunities have made covering daily living expenses extremely challenging.
Negina adds: “The most painful thing while confined at home is the sense of deprivation from the right to education, which I worked so hard to achieve. Moreover, I have lost the social status I had as a professor, and now, like many other housebound women, I am merely occupied with household chores and daily tasks, while my academic abilities and capacities remain unused. This feeling of being ignored and forgotten is one of the deepest pains I experience in the current situation.”
Shigofa (pseudonym), a former professor at Kabul University, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily: “The situation and state I have been facing and experiencing for some time are extremely difficult to express, and I cannot capture it in a few sentences.”
This Kabul University professor adds: “Since May 10, 2025, when I saw the word ‘dismissed’ next to my name, I was shocked. I am in a different state, have lost my focus, and cannot express the terrible feeling I have.”
Samira (pseudonym), who taught at one of Kabul University’s faculties from 2002 until the issuance of the order suspending women’s teaching at universities, says that the Taliban informed female professors of their post reduction disrespectfully, without mentioning their academic titles or ranks, even though this process could have been conducted with respect and dignity. She emphasizes that the appointment, promotion, and education of female professors were never verbal, so their dismissal and reduction should not be conducted verbally either. According to her, formal and respectful notification was their undeniable right, so they could at least be properly informed of their fate and not feel humiliated.
This Kabul University professor adds that, including herself, all female professors who have been confined to their homes are now grappling with mental, psychological, and economic challenges. Referring to the common proverb “the ground is hard, and the sky is far,” she says they are powerless; many of these women lack even the savings to start a new job or launch small businesses.
Samira says: “I am struggling with economic, mental, psychological, and security issues. Other female professors are in a similar situation, and I know our pain and suffering are shared.”
Meanwhile, three other female professors, in conversations with the Hasht-e Subh Daily about their current living conditions, limited themselves to this short statement: “What can be said except regret?” They stressed that reporting and highlighting the situation of female professors under Taliban rule will not bring any change. These professors refrained from continuing the conversation or providing further details about their circumstances.
At the same time, some former professors who were allowed to visit the university and sign their attendance until May 8, 2025, the official date of the reduction notice, say that some of their female colleagues continued signing attendance until May 26, 2025.
These Kabul University professors say that some women who were not subjected to post-reduction are those whose husbands or family members are still active as professors at Kabul University. According to them, among these individuals are young, newly appointed, and inexperienced women who, unlike many experienced professors with academic ranks, were not subjected to reduction.
These professors emphasize: “Those whose posts were preserved have close ties with the president of Kabul University and the Taliban’s Minister of Higher Education, and they may even be their like-minded agents, which is why their posts were retained.”
Furthermore, sources confirm that this trend is not limited to Kabul University but has been similarly implemented in several provincial universities. According to them, the posts of connected, favored, or influential individuals have been preserved and spared from reduction.
Female professors who have been dismissed from universities say: “More than anything, this aspect of the matter is the most painful—that there were no clear criteria. Experienced professors with high academic ranks were dismissed, while some inexperienced or newly appointed individuals with connections or influence remained in their posts.”
The Taliban, under the pretexts of “curriculum review” and “downsizing,” have systematically and structurally eliminated female professors from universities. Academic sources also confirm that these decisions are not academic but political and based on gender discrimination. According to them, the removal of female professors, alongside the exclusion of books related to law, political science, and gender studies from the curriculum, indicates the intensification of the Taliban’s repressive approach toward modern knowledge and research.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
