Education policy

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement this week that the continued exclusion of girls from classrooms was “a tragic violation of their fundamental rights.” She warned that the ban is denying an entire generation the opportunity to learn and jeopardizing Afghanistan’s future.

In the quiet classrooms of Pakistani universities, thousands of Afghan students – many in the last stretch of their advanced degrees – are living with an unrelenting countdown. On 31 August 2025, Pakistan’s government has ordered that all Afghan nationals must leave the country or face arrest and deportation.

The initiative, spearheaded by Prime Minister and Minister of Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, aims to overhaul the country’s education system to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving global landscape.

An overwhelming number of Sri Lankan households subsist on less than Rs. 1000 a day, or roughly Rs. 30,000 a month. These families are compelled to make impossible choices – often between food and education – leading many to defer or forgo early education for their children.

UNAMA’s quarterly report highlighted sections of the ministry’s law, claiming it imposes new restrictions on women. It stated that the law formalises previous decrees and broadens existing limitations while introducing additional ones.

The report is based on extensive discussions with state government officials from over 20 states and union territories, vice-chancellors and senior academics from 50 SPUs, and chairpersons of several state higher education councils.

The report states that 54 million students in India alone were impacted, primarily due to severe heatwaves that led to widespread school closures and changes in academic schedules.

Sher Abbas Stanikzai, a senior political deputy at Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry, stated that there was no valid reason to continue restricting education for women and girls, emphasising that the ongoing ban was not rooted in Islamic law.