At a time when women were already banned from attending schools and universities, Radio Femme has played a crucial role in providing alternative methods of education.

It offers a rare platform for women and girls to learn and continue their studies, with eight teachers delivering lessons in subjects ranging from math to science.

But then on 30 September, with no immediate explanation for the ruling Taliban authorities cut off the internet and phone networks across Afghanistan effectively taking Radio Femme off air.

The temporary closure of the radio station is just one small example of how women have been affected by the nationwide Internet blackout.

This blackout along with the aftermath of an earthquake in the east of the country, an ongoing drought in the north, and the return of millions of refugees expelled from neighboring countries, has made life for women and girls in Afghanistan increasingly difficult.

“It is another crisis on top of the existing crisis. It is utterly unnecessary for this kind of interruption to take place, and the impact is going to be on the lives of Afghan people.”, said Arafat Jamal, country representative for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).