Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021, fragile policy gains for women’s rights have been dramatically reversed. This London event will launch joint research by DROPS and London based think-tank, ODI, with the latest evidence for governments and development actors to understand the impact of Taliban edicts on the lives of women and girls. Political insecurity, economic precarity and ongoing gender persecution have negatively impacted social norms around age of marriage. The research shows how families are increasingly marrying off their girls to cope with closures of education and employment opportunities – driven also by fear of forced
