1405 Kankor exam held in Panjshir without girls; women’s deprivation from higher education continues

Kabul Times News | 2026-05-21
Report; Samiullah Jahesh

Panjshir- The 1405 Kankor exam officially began today on the campus of Panjshir Provincial University; an exam that is being held for the third consecutive year without girls and has once again increased concerns about the continued deprivation of women and girls from higher education in Afghanistan.

According to information provided by local Taliban officials, the Kankor question boxes were opened by the designated committee of the Taliban Ministry of Higher Education in the presence of Dr. Abdul Haq Habibi Salehi, Dean of Panjshir University, and Maulvi Mahmood Talib Saqib, Director of Education of the province, and the exam process has officially begun.

The Dean of Panjshir University said that on the first day of the exam, 1,073 12th grade graduates from schools in seven districts and the center of Panjshir province participated. According to him, another 560 people, all of whom are students of religious schools, will take the exam tomorrow.

Taliban officials have also said that necessary cooperation and facilities will be provided for school graduates to continue their education up to the bachelor's level, in accordance with the policy of the Ministry of Higher Education. This is while last winter, thousands of young people were trained in free Kankor preparation courses at the expense of the Panjshir provincial government.

However, the complete absence of girls in this exam has led to widespread reactions and criticism. Critics say that by continuing to ban girls from education beyond the sixth grade and depriving women of entering universities, the Taliban have effectively deprived half of society of their fundamental right to education.

Women's rights activists and educational institutions emphasize that holding Kankor exams without the presence of girls indicates a deepening education crisis in Afghanistan; a crisis that has seriously threatened the future of the young generation, especially women.

They warn that continuing these policies could have widespread social, economic, and cultural consequences for the country and further distance Afghanistan from global standards of education and development.