In Afghanistan, the Taliban have marked five years in power since U.S. forces withdrew from the country. Since retaking control in 2021, the Taliban have stripped away the rights of women and girls, with UNESCO reporting some 2.4 million girls are now barred from secondary and higher education. The United Nations warns more than half of women’s organizations still working in Afghanistan could cease operations within the next year due to funding problems. This is the permanent representative of Denmark to the United Nations.

Christina Markus Lassen: “The Taliban’s systematic repression of women and girls has become a defining feature of the current system. Afghanistan remains the only country in the world where girls are banned from secondary and higher education. The grave abuse of the right to education is also having far-reaching consequences for Afghanistan’s economic development and provision of essential public services.”