She Forward

On the occasion of International Literacy Day, let’s remember that literacy is more than reading and writing — it is freedom, power, and opportunity.

Yet in Afghanistan, this right is being stolen from millions of girls.

📉 Before 2021, literacy among girls aged 15–24 had risen to 44%.
🚫 Today, with schools and universities closed, those hard-won gains are collapsing.

Illiteracy doesn’t just keep girls from books — it keeps them from their future. It means no independence, no voice, and no power to shape their lives, their future and their communities.

A generation denied literacy is a generation denied choices — and denied freedom.

Four days after Sunday 31 August earthquake in Kunar, over 2,200 people have died and more than 3,640 are injured. The death toll is expected to rise, as many still trapped for four days are unlikely to survive.

Also a severe shortage of female doctors at these critical moments is leaving women and children without urgent care. With schools closed to girls, Afghanistan grows more vulnerable each day.

Our hearts are with the people of Kunar. We stand in solidarity with all those affected and hope for swift rescue and recovery.

Photos: Al Jazeera; © Doctors Without Borders

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