KABUL, Afghanistan — The Taliban-run Ministry of Education announced on Monday the opening of registration for the 2024 university entrance exams, known as the Kankor, for male high school and religious seminary graduates. For the third consecutive year, however, female students remain barred from registering.
Since the Taliban prohibited education for girls above the sixth grade, millions of girls have been unable to attend school, leaving them excluded from opportunities for higher education.
Mansoor Ahmad Hamza, a spokesperson for the Taliban-led Ministry of Education, encouraged prospective candidates to complete online registration forms but did not address the exclusion of girls from the exam.
Eligible candidates have until the end of January to register.
Taliban banned women from attending universities in December 2022.
Meanwhile, many young women who would otherwise qualify for the exam voiced disappointment over their exclusion and urged the Taliban to lift restrictions on their education.
“There’s no religious barrier to girls’ education,” said Fatima, a 12th-grade graduate. “Yet again, registration has opened, and we haven’t been given permission to take part. I hope that universities and schools will reopen for us soon.”
Farhat, a resident of Balkh Province, expressed similar concerns. “There’s no Islamic basis for denying girls an education,” she said. “But the Taliban continue to keep us away from it. Even now, we aren’t allowed to register for the Kankor. Still, I hope these restrictions will soon be lifted.”
Last year, over 87,000 people registered for the Kankor exams, with 44,738 successfully securing admission. But with the Taliban continuing to bar girls from participating, many female graduates remain in uncertainty, awaiting the chance to pursue their education.
