Nearly half of all children in Afghanistan aged seven to 17 are missing out on school due to the ongoing conflict in the country, according to a new report.
The report, compiled by UNICEF along with the Afghanistan Government, Samuel Hall thinktank and USAID and released on Sunday, found that 3.7 million children – a figure which equates to 44 per cent – are missing out on school. It said that the worsening security situation in the country as well as deeply engrained poverty and discrimination against girls has seen the rate of out-of-school children climb for the first time since 2002.
Girls account for 60 per cent of those children not in school and in some provinces – including Kandahar, Wardak, Paktika, Zabul and Uruzgan, and Helmand – the proportion of girls not attending schools jumps to 85 per cent.
The study points out that displacement and child marriage significantly affect a child’s chances of attending school while a shortage of female teachers, poor school facilities and insecurity affecting the delivery of education in conflict-affected areas are also factors in driving up the numbers of those not at school.
Adele Khodr, UNICEF’s Afghanistan representative, commended the Government of Afghanistan “for prioritising and declaring the year 2018 as the year of education”. But she added that now is the time for “a renewed commitment to provide girls and boys with the relevant learning opportunities they need to progress in life and to play a positive role in society.”
Ms Khodr said children who are not at school face “increased danger of abuse, exploitation and recruitment”.
