Afghanistan has one of the youngest populations on the planet. The median age is 19, half the population is under 19 years old. It was only 19 years ago that girls were banned from school and only 1% of young men attended a “college.” Today, approximately 1/3 of students are girls. With the population being so young, there is an amazing potential in this upcoming generation.
One Kabul high school senior, Alizada, faced extreme odds of completing high school. She was allowed to attend school, even though her father was a poor coal miner. Two years ago her classroom was attacked by an ISIS suicide bomber, killing 40 of her classmates. She dropped out but eventually reentered school at the urging of her teachers. She eventually earned the top national spot in the college entrance exams.
