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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Sarah Johnson

Overseas education project for women and girls axed by UK after two years

A girl in a blue patterned headscarf and dress writes in a lined notebook with a pen
An Afghan girl in a secret school. Since the Taliban takeover in 2021, girls have been barred from secondary education, but some still study in secret. Photograph: Nanna M Steffensen/Guardian

A leading higher education programme, aimed at keeping 1 million girls in school across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, has been axed by the British government just two years after it was announced.

The scheme, Strengthening higher education for female empowerment (SHEFE), which was unveiled with some fanfare two years ago by the outgoing Conservative government, had a £45m budget to increase access to higher education for 1 million students worldwide. It has now had its tender withdrawn, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said.

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