Note to the reader

Afghanistan NRVA 2005 14

3.2.2. School attendance

The net enrolment ratio in primary education is the number of children 6-13 years enrolled and attending primary school. NRVA 2005 estimates the national average for attendance as 29 female, 43 male and 37 overall. The achievement of universal primary education MDG No. 2 by 2015 also can be assessed by the net enrolment rate in primary education of 6 to 13 years old. Table 4: Net enrolment in primary education 6 to 13 years old Kuchi Rural Urban Female Male All Female Male All Female Male All 6 11 9 27 44 36 51 55 53 Net enrolment in urban areas is reported to be as high as 53. With almost a 1:1 ratio of girls and boys attending primary school, indicating that in urban areas, the issue of getting children to school is not completely determined by culture, but may be due to access or other social challenges. In rural areas the average net enrolment is lower with only 36 and Kuchi only 9; there is also a 1:2 ratio of girls to boys, indicating that there is a cultural challenge as well as a greater social and access challenge. These figures can also be used as a baseline for the achievement of the MDG No. 3, to promote gender equality and empower women. Overall net enrolment is 37, for girls 29 and for boys 43 In rural Afghanistan, Paktya 67, Kapisa 62, Kunduz 59, Balkh 55 and Faryab 54 have the highest rate of enrolment of both girls and boys. Girls’ enrolment is highest in Paktya 56, Faryab 52, Hirat 48, Kunduz 47 and Kapisa 46 while boys’ enrolment is highest in Kapisa and Paktya 77, Kunduz 69, Balkh 67, Khost 63, Parwan 61 and Panjsher 60. In contrast, Zabul 1, Uruzgan 1, Hilmand 6 and Paktika 9, in the south and south- eastern have the lowest rates of enrolment for girls and boys. Overall enrolment in urban areas is 53, with the highest figure in Kunduz 75, Hirat 74, Jawzjan 67 while Kandahar 34 and Baghlan 36 present the lowest rates. As the overall enrolment decreases, female and male enrolment also follows the same trend in the respective provinces. In one extreme, the highest overall enrolment in Kunduz is 75 while girls’ enrolment is 74 and that of boys is 76. In the other extreme, Kandahar has 34 overall enrolment while girls’ enrolment is 28 and that of boys is 36. Kuchi have a 9 national rate of enrolment for both girls and boys; girls’ enrolment is 6 and boys’ is 11 no figures are available from the NMAK survey for comparison. Afghanistan NRVA 2005 15 Figure 5: Net enrolment in primary education, both sexes 6-13 years old Figure 6: Net enrolment in primary education, girls 6-13 years old With improved access to schools for both girls and boys and changes in cultural attitudes, the female to male literacy ratio should increase. These changes are already evident in the urban areas with higher exposure to non-traditional sources of information.