Afghanistan: Afghanistan’s Taliban-run government ordered all domestic and international Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) to prohibit female employees from coming to work in the latest restriction on women’s rights.

The letter, confirmed by economy ministry spokesperson Mr. Abdulrahman Habib, stated that the female employees were not allowed to work until further notice because some had not adhered to the administration’s interpretation of the Islamic dress code for women.

The Taliban-led government had imposed a ban on women attending universities, drawing widespread international condemnation as well as domestic protests and harsh criticism days after. The Taliban and representatives of the civic society were invited to discussions in January 2022 by Norway, which funds aid in Afghanistan and denounced the action.

My heart goes out to the millions of Afghan girls and young women, whose hopes and dreams for the future are dealt a crushing blow by the announcement that they cannot exercise their basic human right of access to higher education. I urge the DFA to reverse this decision.

— Paul Klouman Bekken (@NorwayinAFG) December 21, 2022

“The ban on female employees in NGOs must be reversed immediately, in addition to being a blow to women´s rights, this move will exacerbate the humanitarian crisis and hurt the most vulnerable Afghans,” Mr. Paul Klouman Bekken tweeted.

It was not immediately clear how the order would affect United Nations agencies, which have a large presence in Afghanistan delivering services amid the country’s humanitarian crisis, as per the report.

Mr. Habib remarked that, the letter applied to organizations under Afghanistan’s coordinating body for humanitarian organisations, known as ACBAR. That body does not include the United Nations but includes over 180 local and international NGOs.

The UN frequently hires NGOs with offices in Afghanistan to carry out its humanitarian mission. Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021, the already fragile economy has collapsed as a result of sanctions and reductions in foreign funding.

According to the statement, “humanitarian aid, aimed at meeting urgent needs, has provided a lifeline to millions of people. Over half of Afghanistan’s population are reliant on humanitarian aid, according to the International Rescue Committee.”

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