Women’s rights have improved since the fall of the Taliban, although the pace of change and the take-up by women of the new opportunities available to women is often constrained by cultural norms, particularly in rural areas.

Women’s equality is enshrined in the Constitution, which also protects a woman’s right to participate in the political life of the country. One quarter of the seats in the Lower House of Parliament (the Wolesi Jirga) and one sixth of the Upper House (the Meshrano Jirga) are reserved for women.

The Ministry of Women’s Affairs, works closely with the Ministry of Finance and other line ministries to ensure that reconstruction assistance meets the needs of women. UN agencies such as UNIFEM and UNICEF are also supporting the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Judicial Reform Commission to revise Afghan domestic law so that women’s rights can be adequately protected by the justice system.

The Afghan Government has ratified the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and is committed to reporting on progress made in meeting its obligations.

Women’s rights in practice

• the Afghan Government continues to address gender disparities in education. In 2005 a national campaign was launched to promote girls’ enrolment in school. 37% of the 5.1 million Afghan children now in education are girls and a third of teachers are women
• healthcare for Afghan women has also improved significantly. UN and international sponsored health programmes are helping the Afghan Government focus on women and children’s health
• Ministry of Health bodies are now investing in maternal care training and education.

Despite these advances, much more remains to be done to protect and promote women’s rights. Women remain one of the most vulnerable groups in society and allegations of abuse of women, both in public and within households are widespread.

The poor performance of the judicial system in practice means that there are few protections for victims of such abuse. Women’s access to education, healthcare and work are also limited, often by their own families or by conservative local custom. Maternal mortality rates remain amongst the highest in the world.

UK Support for Women's Rights

• since 2002 the UK has contributed over £2 million towards international assistance for judicial reform, providing financial support to Afghanistan’s Ministry of Justice, the UNDP project 'Justice for All' and the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission
• over the past three years the UK has provided £140,000 to support Womankind projects in Afghanistan. Womankind, a UK charity dedicated to improving women’s opportunities in developing countries, has undertaken FCO-funded projects which deliver advocacy training and promote the role of women in political life; livelihood training for women; and provision of childcare in Kabul prison
• we are providing £240,000 between 2004 and 2006 for the UK Bar Human Rights Committee to deliver human rights training for key actors in Afghanistan’s legal sector, focusing on the rule of law and women’s access to justice
• £160,000 was committed to an ActionAid project between 2004 and 2006 to encourage women’s political and economic participation at the village level
• we are supporting the Government of Afghanistan’s National Solidarity Programme, which encourages and funds women’s participation in the selection of local reconstruction projects
• in 2005 we provided £200,000 to the BBC World Service to produce 52 weekly episodes of an Afghan Women’s Hour programme, featuring discussions and reports on women’s rights, education, work and health issues
• at the end of 2005 £700,000 was committed to three more women’s rights projects: Women’s Rights Advocacy in Afghanistan; Afghan Women Affecting Change; and Women Support Programme in Afghanistan.

The British Embassy in Kabul also supports a variety of small-scale projects, including literacy and vocational training projects, and support for the Afghan Women's Education Centre.

For further details of our assessment of women’s rights in Afghanistan please see the FCO's Human Rights Annual Report 2007.