Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Women and Girls: Afghanistan

Tuesday 25 February 2025 · 1 question

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Rebecca Smith inquired about the fate of UK aid programs for women's health in Afghanistan, considering the Taliban's restrictions on women's rights.
  • Anneliese Dodds noted that the UK is backing an initiative to refer Afghanistan to the International Court of Justice for rights violations.
  • The UK aims to apply political pressure regarding the Taliban's undermining of women's rights in Afghanistan.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rebecca Smith Con South West Devon
Foreign Affairs Women & Equalities
Context

The Taliban's ban on medical training for women and girls has raised concerns about the future of aid programmes supporting women's health in Afghanistan.

Question

Why does Rebecca Smith ask what will happen to UK aid programs for women’s health given the Taliban's undermining of women’s rights, and what actions can be taken to put pressure on the Taliban?

Answer from The Minister for Development (Anneliese Dodds)

Anneliese Dodds acknowledges that the Taliban have been undermining women's rights in Afghanistan. She states that the UK is politically supporting an initiative to refer Afghanistan to the International Court of Justice for violations of the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, and mentions discussions with the Aga Khan Foundation to ensure support reaches girls.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific details about the future of UK aid programmes in Afghanistan regarding women’s health were not provided.

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