The media of Afghanistan is in the development stage, which includes printing, broadcasting and digital. It is mainly in Pashto and Dari (Persian) languages. Although it was tightly controlled under the Taliban government from 1996 to late 2001, the state media gradually relaxed press restriction and private media began growing rapidly. In 2008, Reporters Without Borders listed the media environment of Afghanistan as 156 out of 173, with 1st being most free. Journalists in the country operate in one of the world's most complex and contested information environments. At times, the lines between propaganda, intelligence and journalism blur, and some journalists covering Taliban activities have been accused of treachery or arrested, while others have been kidnapped, beaten or harassed by Taliban insurgents.
The first newspaper, Siraj-ul-Akhbar (Lamp of the News) in was initially published on January 11, 1906, with Abd al-Rauf as editor. After this first and only issue in Dari (Persian), its publication stopped. It was revived in October 1911 by Mahmud Tarzi, the editor and owner of the newspaper, who was critical of the friendship between the United Kingdom and Afghanistan. Mahmud Tarzi became known as the pioneer of Afghan journalism. In 1919, under King Amanullah Khan, Aman-i-Afghan (Afghan Peace) replaced Siraj al-Akhbar, serving as an organ of the government, while several smaller private journals appeared under different ministries. Along with these developments, Radio Kabul began broadcasting in 1925, which inaugurated a new era of mass media in the country. The 1964 Constitution of Afghanistan and the Press Law of 1965 provided for freedom of the press, within the boundaries of appropriate behaviour. The press was editorially independent from government but was instructed to safeguard the interests of the state and constitutional monarchy, Islam, and public order. Afghan journalism progressed and developed from the 1950s through to the 1970s, though it remained limited.
When King Zahir Shah's government was overthrown in the 1973 coup his cousin Daoud Khan, approximately 19 newspapers were shut down and media came under severe restriction, ending a period of relative freedom. The first colour television broadcasting appeared in 1978. The media fell into the control of Soviet influences during the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) from 1979 to 1992.
Education in Afghanistan
Education in Afghanistan was improved under the rule of King Zahir Shah (from 1933 to 1973), making primary schools available to about half the population who were younger than 12 years of age, and expanding the secondary school system and the national university at Kabul. During the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan, the government of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan reformed the education system; education was stressed for both men and women and widespread literacy programmes were set up. According to sources, in 1988, women made up 40 percent of the doctors and 60 percent of the teachers at the University of Kabul; 440,000 female students were enrolled in educational institutions and 80,000 more in literacy programs. Despite improvements, large percentage of the population remained illiterate. Beginning with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, successive wars virtually destroyed the education system. Most teachers fled the country during the wars. In the middle of the 1990s, about 650 schools were functioning.
In 1996 the Taliban regime banned education for females, and the madrassa (mosque school) became the main source of primary and secondary education. After the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001, the Karzai administration received substantial international aid to restore the education system. In 2003 some 7,000 schools were operating in 20 of the 34 provinces, with 27,000 teachers teaching 4.2 million children (including 1.2 million girls). Of that number, about 3.9 million were in primary schools. When Kabul University reopened in 2002, some 24,000 students, male and female, enrolled. Five other universities were being rehabilitated in the early 2000s. Since the end of the dogmatic Taliban era in 2001, public school curricula have included religious subjects, but detailed instruction is left to religious teachers. In 2003 an estimated 57 percent of men and 86 percent of women were illiterate, and the lack of skilled and educated workers was a major economic disadvantage.
By 2006, over 4 million male and female students were enrolled in schools throughout Afghanistan. At the same time school facilities or institutions were also being improved, with more modern-style schools being built each year.
However, there are still significant obstacles to education in Afghanistan, many of which stem from a lack of funding. Planning curricula and school programs is difficult for the Ministry of Education because a significant amount of the budget for education comes from varying external donors each year, making it difficult to predict what the annual budget will be. The obstacles to education are even more numerous for Afghan girls. Afghanistan's Education Minister, Mohammad Hanif Atmar, said in 2007 that 60% of students were studying in tents or other unprotected structures, and some Afghan parents refused to let their daughters attend schools in such conditions. A lack of women teachers is another issue that concerns some Afghan parents, especially in more conservative areas. Some parents will not allow their daughters to be taught by men. But this often means that girls are not allowed to attend school, as the international aid agency Oxfam reported in 2007 that about one quarter of Afghan teachers were women. In 2009, another concern is the destruction of schools, especially girls' schools, by the Taliban. Following the destruction of over 150 schools in a year, many parents have doubts about the government's ability to protect them. Despite the conflict, major achievements have been made since the fall of the Taliban (2001):
- Between 2001 and 2009, primary school enrolment rose from 0.9 million to nearly 7 million (a sevenfold increase in eight years) and the proportion of girls from virtually zero to 37 per cent. Yet 42 per cent of the population of schoolchildren is still estimated to be out of school.
- The number of teachers in general education has risen sevenfold, but their qualifications are low and only 31 per cent are women.
- Since 2003, over 5,000 school buildings have been rehabilitated or newly constructed, but still only just over 50 per cent of schools have usable buildings. Thousands of communities have no access to schools due to distance or security. In the period between October 2005 and March 2007, 6 per cent of schools were burned down or closed down by the insurgents.
- A particular issue of concern is ongoing direct attacks on education. In 2008, the number of attacks on schools, teachers, and pupils had almost tripled to 670 – almost two attacks every day! – compared with the two previous years (O’Malley, 2010: 173; Glad, 2009: 21).
Health in Afghanistan
Health in Afghanistan is in need of improvement due to the country being in a state of civil war for the last 30 years. However, since 2002 when the United Nations began focusing on the situation in Afghanistan, after Operation Enduring Freedom, some improvement was made to the health care system of the country. According to USAID, infant mortality rate has dropped by 33 percent and approximately 64 percent of the total population now has access to some form of health care. Most Afghans live within one hour travel to a health facility. The Afghan Ministry of Public Health deals with matters concerning the health of Afghanistan's population.
Beginning in 1979, military conflict destroyed the health system of Afghanistan. Most medical professionals left the country during the 1980s and 90s, and all medical training programs ceased. In 2003, there were 11 physicians and 18 nurses per 100,000 population, and the per capita health expenditure was $28 US dollars. The nation had one medical facility for every 27,000 people in 2004, and some centers were responsible for as many as 300,000 people. The international organizations provided a large share of medical care. An estimated one-quarter of the population had no access to health care.
At the same time, the physical and psychological effects of war have substantially increased the need for medical care. Infant, child, and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world (about 154 per 1,000) which is the second in the world after Angola, and by some estimates as high as 275 per 1,000). In rural areas, one in six children dies before reaching age five. The is because of poor sanitation and insufficient potable water supply, infectious and parasitic diseases such as malaria and diarrhea are very common. Malnutrition and poor nutrition also are pervasive. The drought of 1999–2002 exacerbated these conditions. An estimated 800,000 Afghans are disabled.
Many hospitals and clincs have been built in the country over the last decade, with the most advanced treatments being available in Kabul. The French Medical Institute for Children and Indira Gandhi Childrens Hospital in Kabul are the leading children's hospitals in Afghanistan. The Jinnah Hospital in Kabul is also under construction at the moment, which is funded by the Government of Pakistan. There are also a number of well-equipped regional hospitals across the country that were built by the United States Army Corps of Engineers and are run by the Afghan National Army. Despite large-scale international assistance, the World Health Organization (WHO) expects Afghanistan's health indicators to improve by 2014.