Paris, Aug. 12 -- Noting that Afghanistan remains the only country in the world to formally prohibit access to education for girls and women beyond the primary level, UNESCO on Tuesday called for the full restoration of the right to education, warning that the country's ban risks causing "irreversible harm" and decades of lost potential of an entire generation.

According to a statement released by the United Nations body, as of 2026, an estimated 2.4 million girls across Afghanistan remain locked out of classrooms owing to the grim campaign launched by the Taliban in 2021, violating the rights of girls and women, especially their right to education.

"These restrictions are reversing two decades of progress in expanding access to educati...