Afghan women turn to online courses as Taliban bans education for girls

Kabul: One after the other, the opportunities vanished. Like so many other Afghan women, Sodaba could do little but watch as her country’s new Taliban government imposed a stranglehold on women’s lives.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021, and quickly set about implementing a dizzying array of restrictions for women: No visiting parks or gyms, no eating in restaurants, no working, except in very few professions.

But one of the cruellest blows for the pharmacology student was the ban on education beyond primary school.

Pushed by necessity, she went online. And there, she found hope: a free computer coding course for women in Afghanistan. Taught in her own language, Dari, by a young Afghan refugee living half a world away, in Greece.

“I believe a person should not be (bowed) by circumstance, but should grow and get their dreams through every possible way,” Sodaba said. She began learning computer programming and website development. The new skills “helped me regain my confidence and clarity in my direction,” said the 24-year-old, who asked to be identified by her first name only for safety reasons due to the education ban. “I am so happy to be part of this journey.” The courses are part of Afghan Geeks, a company created by Murtaza Jafari, now 25, who arrived in Greece on a boat from Turkiye years ago as a teenage refugee.

While living in a shelter in Athens after he arrived, Jafari received help from a teacher to enrol in a computer coding course. He knew nothing about computers didn’t know what coding was and didn’t speak a word of English, essential for computer programming.