What ' s at stake in the Afghan peace process ? An expert shares her view
In Afghanistan , one of the most significant gains made in the past two decades has been the increase in girls ’ access to education .
While the focus has been on the numbers of girls gaining access , little has
been said about the change in people ’ s attitude toward girls ’ education .
Attitudes towards education have changed over the years . There are numerous examples of Afghan men donating their land to build schools for girls , fathers walking several miles a day to accompany their daughters to school , and fathers demanding better education for their children — sons and daughters .
Youth in urban locations enjoy greater access to information and better-quality education . In most rural areas , however , people are still struggling to give their children access to quality education . The reasons are multiple , but the main barriers include lack of schools and threats against teachers and female students by the Taliban and ISIS .
Afghan children are thirsty for education and so are their parents , including in some strictly conservative areas . Khost province is an example of how progress is happening .
Early this year , Khost , a conservative province and the birthplace of the leader of the Haqqani Network , a militant group , made news headlines when elders , religious actors , and youth ( all male ) from Shamal district issued a statement in which they called on district residents to send their children to school . “ Those disobeying the order will be fined 100,000 Afghani ($ 1,300 ).”
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