Taliban bans women from taking medical exam

Nearly 5,000 female doctors are in limbo, because the Taliban prevented them from taking a major medical exam.

The BBC reported that without passing the “practice exam” supervised by the Afghan Medical Council, no person can obtain a work license, register as a doctor, and practice medicine, noting that the movement allowed only male graduates to take the exam.

A former official in the Afghan Ministry of Health said, “Women made up 40 percent of those accepted into medical colleges before the Taliban took control.”

Under Taliban rule, women were registered as nurses and midwives. Medical colleges have no longer accepted females since December 2022.