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Five years after the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, the de facto authorities have issued more than 100 decrees affecting Afghan women and girls and stripping them of their rights, freedoms, and dignity.
No other country has dismantled the rights of half its population through law, policy, and practice to the same extent.
At the beginning of this year, the Taliban issued a decree effectively legalising domestic violence by allowing husbands to punish their wives.
And in May, another decree removed minimum age protections for marriage and made it harder for women to leave a spouse. This has increased the risk of forced and child marriage.
This is not just a loss of rights. It is the systematic erasure of women and girls from public life. Five years on from the Taliban takeover and the exclusion of women and girls is being normalised.
This unparalleled crisis of women’s and girls’ rights is at risk of being forgotten by the world.
New UN Women data reveals that half of Afghan women interviewed leave home only once or twice a month because of the severe restrictions on their movement and access to public spaces.
Girls are banned from secondary school. Women have been pushed out of almost every workplace, erased from political life.
In many areas, women are forbidden to walk the streets unless they are accompanied by a male relative.
Many can no longer make basic decisions in their own homes.
We cannot accept a world where the futures of Afghan women and girls are erased.
10.7 million women and girls need humanitarian assistance this year
50% of women leave home only once or twice a month due to severe restrictions on their movement and access to public spaces
Growing shortages of women health workers, limited access to essential medicines, and restrictions that, in some communities, prevent women from being treated by male doctors mean that many women are unable to access the health care they need.
The results are devastating. Many women are living shorter, less healthy lives. The risks of maternal death, child marriage, and violence against women are growing.
International funding cuts are worsening the already dire situation. More than half of women-led organisations in Afghanistan expect to suspend or close within the next year because of these cuts, threatening one of the last remaining lifelines for women and girls.
How is UN Women supporting women and girls in Afghanistan?
UN Women continues to operate inside Afghanistan, finding ways to support women and girls despite the restrictions on their daily lives, meeting the most urgent needs in humanitarian crises, building livelihoods, investing in safe spaces, and supporting women with nowhere else to turn.
Our support includes:
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By women, for women programming, working with women’s organisations – including women leaders, human rights defenders, journalists and more
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Expanding support for women entrepreneurs through capital, training and access to markets.
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Delivering integrated services including psychosocial support, humanitarian services, and livelihood activities to reach the most marginalized and vulnerable women and girls
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Amplifying the voices of Afghan women in international decision-making platforms
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Documenting the impact of the women’s rights crisis
How to donate to Afghanistan
Donate to Afghanistan online
Use this page to make your donation online to send urgent support to women and girls in Afghanistan.
Donate with your company
For information on how your company can support women and girls in Afghanistan, please email info@unwomenuk.org