Deprived of their right to education under Taliban rule, a growing number of Afghan girls and young women are turning to online platforms to seek economic independence and preserve a sense of purpose amid mounting restrictions.
Among them are Sona and Rawina Alimi, two sisters in Kabul who, after being locked out of schools and universities, began exploring digital finance and remote business opportunities. One year later, they have become the sole breadwinners for their six-member household, using online tools to earn income through cryptocurrency-related platforms.
“I had planned to take the university entrance exam and study psychology,” said Sona Alimi, 22. “But when the doors closed on us — both financially and emotionally — I had to find a way out. I came across online business tools, started learning, and now I’ve built a source of income.”
Their story is increasingly common in a country where women have been largely erased from public life. Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban have imposed sweeping restrictions on women’s education and employment, barring girls from secondary school and women from universities and most jobs.
Despite global condemnation and repeated appeals from Afghan citizens and international organizations, the Taliban have shown no sign of reversing course. An entire generation of women and girls now faces a future without formal schooling or professional prospects.
The Alimi sisters say that while their venture into online business has brought some financial relief, it is not a substitute for education.
“Let girls study,” Sona said. “Education is the key to success. A girl may become a scientist or build a career in the digital world — and she can support her family, too.”
Rawina, her younger sister, echoed the sentiment. “It’s my deepest wish to see universities reopen for women,” she said. “We need both academic and professional growth.”
The sisters are among a small number of Afghan women who have managed to carve out digital livelihoods in the face of extreme limitations. Others have opened small restaurants, started sewing workshops, or created handcraft businesses from home — often without official approval or legal protection.
Still, such stories remain exceptions. For most Afghan women and girls, daily life is defined by isolation and uncertainty. Without access to school, many spend years confined to their homes with few opportunities for personal or economic development.
According to human rights organizations, more than one million girls have been blocked from education over the past four years. The Taliban’s policies, described by some UN experts as gender apartheid, have led to Afghanistan becoming the only country in the world where girls are banned from secondary and higher education.
Afghan women’s growing presence in the online economy has not gone unnoticed. Informal digital businesses — ranging from virtual tutoring and e-commerce to digital currency trading — have emerged as alternative pathways for survival, particularly for women with internet access and basic digital literacy.
But internet access remains uneven, and Taliban authorities have intermittently restricted digital platforms, raising concerns about the long-term viability of such ventures. In addition, many of these businesses operate in legal gray zones, without official registration, bank access, or protection from harassment.
Still, for the Alimi sisters and others like them, digital entrepreneurship offers not only income but a rare sense of agency.
“In a world where we are denied our basic rights,” Sona said, “this is the only door that hasn’t fully closed — yet.”
