GHAZNI - The first-ever girls’ high school has been inaugurated in the Taliban-infested Andar district of Ghazni province, officials said on Monday.

District Education Officer Taza Gul said 400 girls have sought admission to the school so far. The school has been built at a cost of five million Afghanis ($89,000), provided by n non-governmental organization called SIKA-North.

Mr. Gul said the previous building of the school had been damaged that needed to be rebuilt. He urged the authorities to pay urgent attention to repairing the building.

The Andar district chief, Mohammad Qasim Desiwal, said strict measures would be taken to ensure the school’s security. He lauded the role of the Afghan Local Police (ALP) in maintaining security in the area, saying law and order had improved in the town, considered an insurgent stronghold. Andar has witnessed many attacks in recent year.

Happy with the opening of the girl’s school, tribal elder Haji Abdullah said he would send his daughters to school. He encouraged others to follow suit, saying people wanted to educate their children.

Source: Awoshtoon Radio (Paktya)

According to information from the education department, a total of 46 schools are operational in the district, where 22,000 students are enrolled. But there is no school for girls.