Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesperson, gave no clear answer when asked by reporters about the continued ban on girls’ education in Afghanistan, saying that “perhaps now is not the time to discuss this issue.”
Mujahid said at a press conference on Sunday, August 30, that efforts were being made to address areas where there are “stoppages” or gaps, adding that the Taliban had previously responded to questions about the issue.
He made the remarks as, over the past five years since the Taliban’s return to power, schoolgirls and female university students have been barred from attending schools and universities.
The Taliban spokesperson further said that more than 10 million people in Afghanistan are currently engaged in education.
According to him, if the country’s population is 40 million, this means that one in every four people is engaged in education.
Mujahid described the figure as “good news for the people of the country” and said that considerable attention has been paid to education.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has said that Afghanistan is the only country in the world where girls and women are banned from education beyond the primary level.
UNESCO also said that an estimated 2.4 million girls are deprived of secondary education.
