Greetings!
As I wrote previously, Afghanistan's Minister of Higher Education, Nida Mohammad Nadim, announced on the 20th of December that the Universities were closed to women, effectively immediately. Subsequently it was announced that there will be no education for girls of any age and women could no longer work for NGOs (non government organizations). Our ten libraries utilized by over 1,000 girls a day had to be closed and eighteen women can no longer work for us. As a precautionary measure I had Mujeeb retrieve our one hundred and eight computers from the libraries. They will be stored in our office for now.
Afghans along with the international community are outraged. Reports of individual acts of courage are online. University professors are resigning and male university students have refused to take exams and return to class. Demonstrators are being arrested and physically attacked. Mujeeb reports that there are more Taliban with guns in the streets. Women are afraid to leave their homes and are not allowed to leave without being accompanied by a man.
When the Taliban took control in August 2021, they urged Afghans to return to the country. They recognized the need for experienced, trained and educated people to help run the country. If their oppression continues, Afghanistan will again experience a "brain drain" as it did in the late 90"s. when the Taliban were in control. How many will remain with a Minister of Higher education who publicly stated “A woman is a man's farm, and service to man is obligatory on her, not education (...)"
In the December 22 newsletter, "If There is a Way, We'll Find It-- We've been doing it for 19 years" I wrote;
First:
...".before the Taliban's ban, we had already decided to make education accessible inside homes. This can be achieved offline by providing tablets or computers loaded with the educational software we already have.I have been focusing on offline learning due to the cost of access to the internet. Afghans who have access to the internet can learn over the internet... When the Taliban were first in power, girls were secretly educated in homes. That will surely occur again.
On the 30th of December, Mjujeeb advised that everything a child would learn in the first grade through the twelfth can be downloaded onto a tablet that would cost $55 or $50 if we buy 50. I approved buying 50 and asked if he could negotiate a better price if we bought 100. We already have the software to download and will share with anyone who asks. We will loan tablets to families for a period of time to be determined by Mujeeb. That way our supply and impact will grow over time.
