Jawzjan woman opens education centre, enrolls 100 girls

SHIBIRGHAN (Pajhwok): A woman has established an educational centre and has enrolled about 100 girls above the sixth grade in Shiberghan City, the capital of northern Jawzjan province.

The students of this educational course urged the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to reopen the gates of schools towards girls and put an end to their wait.

Soon after returning to power in 2021, the Islamic Emirate banned girls from going to secondary and high schools and then extended to the ban to women’s university education.

Sangi Mah has paved the way for more than 100 girls to continue their education above the 6^th grade in Shiberghan City. School subjects and the Holy Quran are taught to these girls.

In an interview with Pajhwok Afghan News, she said: “I created two education programs with my personal cost and most of the girls who study here are the breadwinners of their families.”

“I established this course three months ago and so far no institution has supported us and our only problem is teaching materials, most of the time we cannot prepare books or copies of the holy Quran,” she added.

Sangi Mah says she would be able to enroll more such girls if supported.

“I can attract more girls if I receive support as most of the girls are interested to come here and gain education, but due to the lack of space and teaching materials, we cannot enroll them,” she explained.

Nurzia Salimi, one of the teachers at the centre, said in addition to other subjects, girls were taught the holy Quran and other Islamic books.

She said most participants of the course belonged to poor families and they could not afford to buy stationery. “If a charity donates books and teaching materials to use, we will be able to increase the number of students.”

The girls studying here are optimistic about their future and ask the government to reopen girls’ schools across the country as soon as possible.

Roya was studying in eighth grade in one of the schools in Shiberghan when the gates of her school were closed.

She hailed the opening of this educational course and said girls were attending their lessons with great enthusiasm and interest, but she wished they would be allowed to go to school as soon as possible.

“We ask the government to open our schools again, it is very hard to wait,” she added.

She urged aid giving agencies and organizations to support this course so that more girls were entrollled.

Another girl said they were being taught free of cost in this course.

She added: “I am very happy to continue my studies, most of the girls who study here are from poor families and are the breadwinners.”

“We girls are ready to observe the religious hijab and go to school and obtain knowledge.”

Girls in different provinces of the country have repeatedly demanded the reopening of schools for them.

However, the authorities have always said they are committed to providing women’s rights, including education, within the framework of Islamic Sharia, and they are working on a plan to reopen schools for all girls.

sa/ma