Afghanistan is a country where woman have barely any rights due to traditions and laws. The Millennium Development Goal in Afghanistan is established to promote gender equality and empower women as the region has a history great gender disparity. In the 1980s women started gaining more rights under the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan(PDPA). These reforms were opposed by many because the reforms went against their culture. However, after the PDPA dissolved, the reforms were quickly forgotten and women lost their higher social status. The Islamic State of Afghanistan(ISA) was formed after the collapse of the PDPA. The ISA then proceeded to restrict women's rights such as their access to education, health, and employment. Only around 6% of women over the age of 25 have had a formal education and only 12% of women over the age of 15 are literate. This is because of the recent history of Afghanistan. The country has been in military conflict since the end of the 20th century and women rights were abused by fundamentalist groups, namely the Taliban. Women were not allowed to work outside their homes, the only exception being a small number of female doctors and nurses in Kabul hospitals. They were even forbidden to show any revealing physical traits. The MDG is designed to help relieve the high gender inequality in the region. After 9/11, the US invaded Afghanistan and overthrew the Taliban government. After the US takeover, it stated that one of its goals in reforming Afghanistan was protection of human rights, which included women's rights. .
Past Actions .
Although the Taliban government fell in 2001, violence still continued toward Afghan women. This violence is known as the "silent epidemic," because women do not speak out about the abuse. According to World Bank, the women's fertility rates have decreased about 40 percent from 2004 to 2012. The mortality rate of children has been increasing; from 120 deaths under age 5 per 1000 children to 100 deaths under age 5 per 1000 children, from the years 2004 to 2012 respectively.
