Women training as midwives and nurses in Afghanistan have told the BBC they were ordered not to return to classes in the morning – cutting off their last route to further education in the country. is effectively closed.
Five separate institutions across Afghanistan also confirmed to the BBC that the Taliban had ordered them to remain closed until further notice, with videos shared online showing students crying at the news. has gone
The BBC has yet to officially confirm the order with the Taliban government’s Ministry of Health.
However, the closure appears to be in line with the group’s broader policy on women’s education, which has seen adolescent girls unable to access secondary and higher education since August 2021.
The Taliban have repeatedly promised to let them back into school once a number of issues are resolved – including ensuring the curriculum is “Islamic”.
That has yet to happen.
One of the few avenues still open to women in education was through the country’s more advanced colleges, where they could learn to become nurses or midwives.
Under the Taliban regime’s restrictions on women, midwifery and nursing are the only careers women can pursue – an important job, as male doctors are not allowed to treat women unless accompanied by a male guardian.
Just three months ago, The BBC was given access to a midwife training center run by the Taliban.Where more than a dozen women in their 20s were learning how to give birth.
Women were happy to have the opportunity to learn.
“My family is very proud of me,” said Safia, a trainee. I have left my children at home to come here, but they know I am serving the country.
But even so, some women expressed concern about whether this too would eventually be stopped.
What will happen to these women – and an estimated 17,000 women are on training courses – is unclear.
No official announcement has been made, although two Health Ministry sources confirmed the ban to BBC Afghan off-the-record.
In videos sent to the BBC from other training colleges, trainees can be heard crying.
“Standing here and crying won’t help,” one student tells a group of women in a video. “Vice and Officials of Virtue [who enforce Taliban rules] are close, and I don’t want anything bad to happen to either of you.”
Other videos shared with the BBC show women silently protesting as they leave colleges – singing as they walk through the corridors.
A student from Kabul said she was told to “wait until further notice”.
“Even though it’s the end of our semester, the exams haven’t been held yet, and we’re not allowed to take them,” he told the BBC.
Another student revealed that they were “only given time to grab our bags and leave the classroom”.
They even told us not to stand in the courtyard because the Taliban could come at any moment, and something could happen. Everyone was scared.” “For many of us, attending classes was a small glimmer of hope after long periods of unemployment, depression and isolation at home.”
What this means for women’s health care remains to be seen: Last year, The United Nations says Afghanistan needs 18,000 more midwives. To meet the needs of the country.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Afghanistan already has one of the worst maternal mortality rates in the world, with 620 women dying for every 100,000 live births, according to a report released last year.
Additional reporting by BBC Afghan