Local residents in southeastern Afghanistan’s Paktika Province have constructed a school building using their own funds.
The school, located in the Zamari Kot area of Yusuf Khel District, was funded entirely by local youth, community elders, and migrants originally from the region, residents said. With the new structure in place, hundreds of students are expected to benefit from improved learning conditions.
Many schools in Paktika still lack permanent buildings, forcing students to study in makeshift shelters or open spaces. Local sources say the absence of proper infrastructure continues to hamper education in the province.
The effort comes at a time when the Taliban have banned girls from attending secondary schools and universities nationwide — a policy in place since the group returned to power in August 2021. Girls are barred from schooling beyond sixth grade, despite mounting pressure from Muslim-majority countries and leading Islamic scholars who have urged the Taliban to reverse the decision.
So far, the Taliban have not made any changes to the policy and have continued to impose broader restrictions on the rights and freedoms of women and girls, limiting their presence in public life, access to employment, and movement without a male guardian.
