The numbers tell an upbeat story about efforts to empower and protect women in Afghanistan: The country now has around 5.7 million children in school, of whom 35 percent are girls. There are 8,000 schools, including several hundred just for girls.
Under the Taliban's rule, there were none. Women now have access to health care and hold a full 25 percent of the nation's parliament. However, the reality for women is much grimmer.
The bulk of the girls' schools actually operate in the capital, Kabul. Women's access to health care, especially reproductive health care, is hampered by untrained midwives and a lack of access to doctors. Although women have representation in parliament, they don't have a real voice in the government.
Amid ongoing disruptions to maritime shipping in the Middle East due to the closure of the...
