Taliban attitudes and policies towards education - ODI working paper

Community based education class in Parwan province, Afghanistan © Des Clark 2020

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There are significant debates and differences of opinion within the Taliban on education. There is a tension between the preferences of the Taliban’s traditionalists and hardliners, and those who recognise that Afghanistan needs more diverse and more modern ideas and approaches within its education system. Even so, there is still a far stronger emphasis on, and preference for, Islamic education.

This paper explores the Taliban’s education policy, how it implements that policy on the ground, and the degree to which there may be room to influence it.