The Taliban’s de facto government has made no clear commitment to allow girls and young women to go to schools and universities again in the new school year, a European Union official said Sunday after meetings in Kabul.

The EU’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Thomas Nicholson, insisted he had not received any “solid commitments” from Taliban ministers on the issue during his contacts.

“Opening schools and universities to provide quality education to boys and girls, young men and women, is not optional,” Mr Nicholson stressed during a press conference. “It is a necessary investment in the future, in the new generation, in a better Afghanistan, and above all (…) it is a request of all Afghans with whom we talk.”

After the fundamentalist Sunni armed movement recaptured power in August 2021, Afghanistan became the only country on the planet to deny education to girls and women.

Initially, the Taliban forbade teenage girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade. Then, in December, the ability of young women to go to university was suspended indefinitely.

They cited violations of their strict dress code, as well as the lack of women’s sections.

In addition, the de facto government banned women from various jobs, including jobs in non-governmental organizations.

“This is a clear violation of women’s right to work which seriously affects their ability to secure a living both for themselves and their families,” the EU special envoy underlined yesterday.