UNICEF Warns of Crisis in Afghanistan's Education and Healthcare Sectors

Critical Warning from UNICEF

Kabul, April 28: The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has issued a stark warning regarding Afghanistan's future, indicating that the nation could lose up to 20,000 women educators and 5,400 healthcare professionals by the year 2030 due to ongoing restrictions on girls' education and women's employment.

In its recent report titled “The Cost of Inaction on Girls’ Education and Women’s Labour Force Participation in Afghanistan,” UNICEF highlighted a decline in female representation within civil services, dropping from 21% to 17.7% between 2023 and 2025.

The organization cautioned that the diminishing number of trained female professionals in educational and healthcare institutions could lead to dire consequences for children's education, health, and future prospects.

UNICEF noted that the restrictions imposed on girls and women's education and employment are costing Afghanistan an estimated US million annually in lost economic productivity, with these losses expected to escalate over time as women remain barred from educational and professional opportunities.

According to the UN agency, the removal of women from teaching and healthcare roles—two sectors where they are allowed to work and are critically needed—directly impacts children, resulting in fewer girls attending school and diminished care for women and children.

The repercussions are particularly acute in healthcare, where cultural norms often prevent women from receiving medical care from male practitioners. The reduction in female health workers will severely limit maternal, newborn, and child health services.

“Afghanistan cannot afford to lose future educators, nurses, doctors, midwives, and social workers who are vital for sustaining essential services. This will be the reality if girls continue to be excluded from education,” stated UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.

She urged the de facto authorities to lift the ban on secondary education for girls and called on the international community to uphold their commitment to supporting girls' rights to education.

UNICEF emphasized that Afghanistan is grappling with a dual crisis: the loss of trained female professionals and the inability of the next generation to fill these roles.

As experienced women retire or exit the workforce, girls remain unable to pursue their education and take on these essential positions.

Each year of delay results in Afghanistan losing another generation of skilled professionals, according to the UN agency.

Since the Taliban's prohibition on girls' secondary education in September 2021, UNICEF reports that one million girls have been denied their right to education in a country that already has one of the lowest female literacy rates globally.

The analysis warns that if the ban continues until 2030, over two million girls in Afghanistan will be deprived of their right to education beyond primary school.

Furthermore, schools are already feeling the impact, with the number of female teachers in basic education decreasing by more than 9%, from nearly 73,000 in 2022 to approximately 66,000 in 2024.