The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) raised concerns on December 4 over reports of a ban on women and girls attending classes at private medical institutions imposed by the Taliban.
“If implemented, the reported directive poses further restrictions on women and girls’ right to education and access to healthcare,” UNAMA stated. “Ultimately, it will have a detrimental impact on Afghanistan’s health care system and the country’s development.”
Earlier this week, several women medical students reported that Taliban authorities instructed them to stop attending medical classes and complete their exams within ten days, according to Tolo News. Afterwards, many Afghans highlighted the issue on X. The Taliban authorities have neither confirmed nor denied these reports.
This is not the first time the Taliban targeted women’s medical education. Last year, they tried to block women and girls from taking their final exams in medical programs, a move that sparked widespread protests.
Since coming back to power in August 2021, the Taliban have implemented various measures that severely restrict women’s basic freedoms, including limitations on their movement, employment, and access to education. These regressive policies contradict the promises made by the Taliban immediately after taking control of the country.
Ban will exacerbate existing health workers shortage
Several countries and international organizations have raised concerns about the reported ban. “I am deeply alarmed by the reports that the de facto authorities in Afghanistan plan to ban women from studying in medical faculties, including fields critical to the health of women and children such as nursing, midwifery and gynecology,” said Catherine Russell, head of UNICEF, in a statement on Wednesday.
“Afghanistan is already facing a desperate shortage of trained health workers, especially women. Female health professionals play a vital role in ensuring that women receive adequate maternal care, that children are vaccinated, and the communities have access to essential health services,” Russell added.
According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Afghanistan needs at least 18,000 additional skilled midwives to meet its immediate healthcare needs, Tolo News reported. If women are banned from continuing their medical education, the already critical shortage of health workers could worsen further. Afghanistan, which depends heavily on international aid for food and basic healthcare, risks facing an even deeper collapse of its health services.
Read more: Afghanistan faces multiple crises rooted in failure to build a robust health system
Describing the situation as a human-induced disaster, former Afghan health officials and international organizations earlier this year affirmed that the restrictions imposed by the authorities led to fewer health workers being present in the health system. These restrictions include bans for women medical workers to travel to work without a male companion, which have led to a significant fall in the accessibility and quality of health services, primarily impacting reproductive and maternal care.
“Without female providers, women are less likely to seek antenatal care during pregnancy and less likely to deliver their babies safely and in clinics. In a country where women and children depend on female health professionals for culturally sensitive care, cutting the pipeline of future health providers would put lives at risk,” Russell said.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) issued a statement urging Kabul authorities to reconsider the ban. The OIC deplored the “new restrictive decree barring women from pursuing medical education,” warning that “such a decision not only strikes a blow to the basic rights of Afghan women but also risks exacerbating the challenges facing Afghanistan’s health care system.”
People’s Health Dispatch is a fortnightly bulletin published by the People’s Health Movement and Peoples Dispatch. For more articles and subscription to People’s Health Dispatch, click here.
