Half of Afghan women now leave their homes just once or twice a month due to Taliban restrictions that limit their movement and participation in public life, according to a report by UN Women released Wednesday.
As the Taliban gear up to mark five years since their return to power, Afghanistan remains the only country in the world where girls are barred from secondary education and women are prohibited from attending university, the UN agency that champions gender equality reported.
“Five years after the Taliban took control in August 2021, Afghanistan has systematically stripped away the rights of half the population, making it a unique case globally with no comparable modern example,” UN Women stated.
Saif-ul-Islam Khyber, spokesperson for the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice — the agency responsible for enforcing many of the regime’s policies on women — told Reuters that claims women don’t feel safe leaving their homes are false, and that women in Afghanistan still have access to their rights.
“This is the first time in nearly 50 years that all Afghan citizens feel they are living in safety and security,” he said, adding that the state of women’s rights is heading in a “positive direction.”
Since regaining power in 2021, the Taliban have prevented around 2.4 million girls from attending secondary school, according to UNESCO.
UN Women reports that Taliban authorities have issued over 100 decrees targeting women and girls since taking control, institutionalizing discrimination and deepening what it called the world’s worst women’s rights crisis.
The Taliban claim they respect women’s rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan culture.
More than half of women surveyed by the UN agency reported leaving their homes twice a month or less, and nearly 75% said they felt unsafe going out without a male guardian, known as a mahram.
These restrictions have also intensified a mental health crisis, with 70% of women describing their mental health as “bad” or “very bad,” citing feelings of isolation, loss of opportunities, and limited access to support networks.
The report warns that recent edicts have further diminished women’s legal protections. Measures introduced this year abolished legal equality between men and women, increased men’s authority within marriages, and made it harder for women to seek divorce.
Women also remain largely excluded from the workforce, with only 7% employed compared to 84% of men, the UN Women data indicates.
This information is based on a door-to-door survey of 2,190 people conducted from February to March 2025, along with telephone surveys of 2,811 individuals carried out from April to May 2026.