6th INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION AND INNOVATIVE SCIENCES CONGRESS, Burdur, Türkiye, 24 - 25 Kasım 2022, ss.334-335
Afghanistan,
which started to take serious steps towards modernization in the second half of
the 19th century, was far from the intended point because the process was
frequently interrupted and there were reversals after some breaks. Despite
gaining its independence before many other countries and having a nationalist
and modernist leader like Emanullah Khan, Afghanistan has not been able to
build a modern state. There are many internal and external reasons why the
modern Afghanistan project, which has a respected position in the international
community, cannot go beyond an example of a failed state today. This study will
focus on the field of education rather than all the problem areas in
Afghanistan. Afghanistan, which is far behind the "Quality Education"
goal number 4 in the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, is one of the
countries with the lowest literacy rate in the world. In Afghanistan, in
addition to the insufficient service in the field of education, gender
discrimination also emerges as an important problem. In the 20-year period following
the overthrow of the Taliban regime in 2001, the new Afghan governments, which
provided the support of the international public, made a notable breakthrough
in the field of education. However, many factors such as the gradual
development of social changes, difficulties in changing the socio-economic
structure, the adoption of the reforms taking time, economic inadequacies, and
security problems caused the developments in the field of education to be
limited. In order to maintain the improvement trend achieved, the regime and
the country had to have a stable structure in Afghanistan. However, the
takeover of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan as of August 2021 has revealed
the threat of failure of reforms and the fear of losing "gains". Many
international actors, especially European countries, have seriously criticized
the policy of the Taliban regime that especially girls should not be educated
after the 6th grade. This problem went as far as threats and limitations over
the aid given to Afghanistan in order for the current government to take a step
towards girls' continuing education. For many European countries, one of the
main obstacles to the recognition of the Taliban regime has been the issue of
girls' education. Although the issue of girls' education may seem like a simple
matter to a Western mind, it is becoming a sensitive issue in Afghanistan.
Because this issue can easily be associated with concepts such as honor, honor
and dignity, with the influence of cultural codes. This study will focus on
education problems in Afghanistan in general and will focus on the education of
girls in particular. The decisive role of the cultural influence and tribal
traditions underlying the attitude of the Taliban regime on this issue will be
emphasized.
Keywords: Afghanistan,
Girls' Education, Quality Education Goal, Sustainable Development Goals,
Taliban