Afghan girls’ school establishes a permanent home in Rwanda

The School of Leadership, Afghanistan has opened a permanent campus in Rwanda, giving its students a lasting place to learn after five years in temporary accommodation. Classes are due to begin at the new site later in September, and the expanded grounds will allow the nonprofit boarding school, known as SOLA, to double its enrollment.

SOLA relocated from Afghanistan after the Taliban returned to power in 2021. A group of 250 students, recent graduates and faculty members reached Rwanda, which had invited the school to relocate, and resumed classes at a hotel just four days later. Today, 122 girls are enrolled.

The new campus provides stability, but demand remains far greater than the school can meet. Thousands of Afghan girls worldwide apply each year, and more than 99% will still be turned away after capacity doubles. Within Afghanistan, a recent United Nations report estimated that 2.4 million girls are excluded from secondary education under restrictions barring them from school beyond sixth grade.

To reach more learners, SOLA also runs SOLAx, a free program offering grades 6 through 12 through WhatsApp. Launched in 2024, it now serves 41,000 students, mostly in Afghanistan but also across 76 other countries. Its design reflects difficult local conditions, allowing learners to quickly delete chats and later resume lessons with a PIN.