Welcome to AFGHAN DISPATCHES 07 with DIVA PATANG (https://twitter.com/DivaPatang?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor) and ChromeRadio's CATRIONA OLIPHANT (https://chromemedia.co.uk/). On 22 June 2022, eastern Afghanistan was hit by the deadliest earthquake in two decades. Already in the grips of a deepening humanitarian crisis, the country is now struggling – with the help of international agencies - to provide disaster relief to the region. But the Afghan economy is verging on collapse as a result of sanctions and the freezing of the country’s overseas assets following the Taliban takeover last August. Compounding this is the Taliban’s gradual exclusion of women from the country’s workforce: women represent nearly 50% of the country’s population and before the Taliban takeover last August made a significant contribution to its economy. In this podcast, we explore the impact of the Taliban’s restrictions on women for the country’s economy and for society more generally. We begin with the importance of education for women. When Diva and I last spoke, it was shortly after the Taliban had suddenly reversed its decision to reopen girls’ secondary schools and those schools remain closed today. Diva had planned to sponsor girls in the area where her family are from with the essentials for going to school. I began by asking her how the Taliban’s decision not to reopen girls’ secondary schools had affected her plans. MUSIC | National Anthem of Afghanistan (http://www.navyband.navy.mil/national_anthems.html) PRODUCTION | Producer/Presenter - Catriona Oliphant for ChromeRadio | Post-production - Catriona Oliphant & Chris Sharp.