We are deeply concerned by the recent decision taken by the leadership of the Taliban to ban women in Afghanistan from participating in university-level education. This discriminatory measure is only the latest in a series of highly repressive actions affecting women and girls in the country, including restrictions preventing Afghan girls from attending secondary school.

This ban ignores the body of evidence on the benefits of education for women for themselves, their families, and their nations. Education has a significant impact on the well-being of individuals, and a strong link exists globally between schooling levels and subsequent earnings, as well as between schooling levels and various social outcomes, such as child health outcomes.

Education is crucial for the economic growth and development of societies. Moreover, the exclusion of women from both participation in and leadership of institutes of higher education can negatively impact the success of the environment, and contribute to hostility, harassment, and violence toward women. These uncivil environments negatively impact not only women, but all members of the community. With this in mind, one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is directed to inclusive and quality education for all women as an important component of promoting peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.

Such restrictions not only constitute a gross violation of internationally guaranteed rights and freedoms, they have profoundly negative implications for Afghan women and girls and Afghanistan itself. The Taliban’s denial of education to half of the Afghan population is a misguided decision with potentially disastrous consequences for the future of the country.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine have long promoted gender equity in education and the STEM workforce, in the United States and globally, and we strongly support women and girls in Afghanistan seeking to exercise their fundamental rights, including the right of access to education without discrimination.

Marcia McNutt
President, U.S. National Academy of Sciences

John L. Anderson
President, U.S. National Academy of Engineering

Victor J. Dzau
President, U.S. National Academy of Medicine