Taliban Close All Private Educational Institutes in Afghanistan’s Nuristan Province

Taliban Close All Private Educational Institutes in Afghanistan’s Nuristan Province
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Taliban authorities have ordered the closure of all private educational institutes in Parun, the capital of Afghanistan’s eastern Nuristan province, raising concerns over further restrictions on education and access to English-language and computer training.

Local reports indicate that the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice sent an official letter to private institute administrators on Thursday, instructing them to suspend their activities and surrender their operating licences. The order follows earlier warnings against expanding English-language education. It remains unclear whether the closures are temporary or permanent.

The move comes amid reports of similar closures affecting English-language and computer training centres in other Afghan provinces, raising concerns about the future of private education and young people’s access to technical and language skills needed for higher education and employment.

Afghanistan’s education system has faced growing challenges since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, including continued restrictions on girls’ secondary education and economic and social barriers to school attendance. According to UNESCO and UNICEF figures cited in the report, approximately 53% of primary-school-age children are outside formal education, while more than 2.6 million girls have been denied access to secondary education since 2021.

The closure of private institutes in Nuristan has renewed concerns that restrictions on non-governmental education could further limit opportunities for Afghan youth, particularly in English and computer studies.