Kabul, Morning: The National Examination Authority of the Taliban has announced that the 1403 (2024) Afghan academic year entrance exam (Kankor) has begun.
The exam started on Thursday morning, June 7th, in 16 provinces of the country. Registration for Kankor candidates began on Tuesday, June 5th, in the provinces of Logar, Parwan, Kapisa, Panjshir, Ghazni, Paktia, Paktika, Zabul, Bamyan, Samangan, Nuristan, Badghis, Herat, Ghor, Maidan Wardak, and Kunar.
Thousands of twelfth-grade graduates are taking the Kankor exam, but for the second consecutive year, girls have been banned from participating in the exam.

According to local reports, the Taliban’s National Examination Authority has launched the 1403 (2024) university entrance exam (Kankor) across 16 provinces—but once again, girls have been barred from participating. This marks the second consecutive year that female students have been excluded, effectively blocking their access to higher education.

By systematically denying girls the opportunity to compete for university placement, the Taliban continues to dismantle educational equity and entrench gender apartheid within Afghanistan’s academic system.