Afghanistan: UN to provide vocational training to women; Taliban restrictions on education remain
Four years after Taliban took over Afghanistan and banned education for girl children, Unicef has announced vocational training for 200 girls in Herat province.
The programme, organised in partnership with Japan and extending over six months, is intended for girls aged between 15 and 25 from the most disadvantaged sections of the country, reports Khamma Press.
It will include training in sewing and carpet weaving.
According to Unicef, the objective of the program is to equip girls with practical skills to support their livelihood and independence, amid social limitations and political instability.
It said that more than one million girls have been deprived of education since the ban by Taliban, creating one of world's most severe education crisis.
The Taliban barred education for girls above sixth grade because they said it didn't comply with their interpretation of Sharia, or Islamic law.
UN warned that that authorities have "almost wiped out" two decades of steady progress for education in Afghanistan.
Last month, a six-year-old girl in Afghanistan's Helmand province was married to a 45-year-old man for money. The Taliban intervened but did not cancel the marriage, instead telling the families to wait until she turns nine before sending her to her husband's home.
The international criminal court also recently issued arrest warrants against two top Taliban leaders, accusing them of persecuting girls and women in Afghanistan, CNN reported.
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In a statement, ICC said that the two men, Taliban supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani are accused of encouraging the abuse of women, girls and others who don't adhere with the Taliban's policy on gender.
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