At least 24 million people in Afghanistan are in need of humanitarian relief.

Qatar sent nearly 60 tonnes of educational materials and food aid to Afghanistan on Tuesday as part of its ongoing efforts to promote education in the crisis-hit country.

In a statement, Doha’s foreign ministry said the aid is provided by Qatar Charity and the Qatar Red Crescent Society and follows on from similar initiatives to deliver assistance to Afghanistan via an airbridge established in 2021.

“This assistance comes within the framework of the State of Qatar’s endeavors and its firm commitment to provide support and stand by the brotherly Afghan people and to provide them with the urgent necessary needs,” the statement read.

The batch was sent following talks on the future of education in Afghanistan, which took place in Doha last month.

Those discussions were attended by the Gulf state’s foreign ministry, Education Above All Foundation, the Afghan Ministry of Education, and the United Nations.

“Participants in these talks agreed on the need to guarantee the right to education for all, to develop a common vision that deals with the challenges, and to provide high-quality educational opportunities for all Afghan students in all regions,” the statement added.

Qatar has been at the forefront of discussions with the Taliban-led acting Afghan government since it seized power in 2021, and has warned the world that isolating Afghanistan puts its population at risk.

Education has been a priority for the Gulf state, especially following restrictive measures imposed by the Taliban that have target girls and women.

Qatar has hosted the Taliban’s political office in Doha since 2012 and has served as a key mediator between the group and the former Afghan administration as well as the rest of the global community.

Last week, the United States envoy for Afghanistan Tom West visited Doha and met with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani as well as Qatar’s Special Envoy for Conflict Resolution Dr. Mutlaq Al-Qahtani.

“Qatar is a crucial partner as we seek to protect US interests, support the Afghan people and defend their rights,” West said on Friday.

In recent years, Doha has doubled down on its calls on the interim Afghan administration to allow Afghan women and girls to pursue education after the Taliban introduced its oppressive measures.

Shortly after taking over Kabul, the Taliban promised a more open system of governance in a bid to dissociate with its previous rule – which lasted between the late 1990’s and 2001 and saw devastating regression across the country.

In January, Qatar’s foreign minister said Doha has been in contact with the interim government to understand the rationale behind the restrictive policies towards women and girls.

The top diplomat told CNBC at the time that Doha cannot see such policies rationalised from either a religious or cultural perspective, and confirmed his country is currently involved in consultations with other Muslim nations to “deal” with the situation.

“It’s just more and more provoking and making the situation much worse for them and for the Afghan people, we’ve been trying to reach out recently after these decisions take place. We’ve been trying also through other means jointly with other Muslim countries to talk to them and to go together,” Sheikh Mohammed said.

The Qatari official also vowed that Doha will stand with and support the women in Afghanistan.

“We will not exert any effort in order to make sure that we are helpful for them and to make sure that these kinds of decisions are not happening,” Sheikh Mohammed said.

Afghanistan’s education sector has suffered from decades of war that has devastated the country.

The UN estimates that there are 3.7 million out-of-school children in Afghanistan, of which 60% are girls. Some of the contributing factors include the lack of basic educational resources, sanitation, proper facilities, and traditional beliefs.

“Geographical barriers, especially in mountainous areas, also make it hard for children to reach the classroom. Once children do make it, they often receive a lower quality of education because only 48% of their teachers have the minimum academic qualifications,” the UN’s website says.

Decades of conflict and drought in Afghanistan have also caused a major humanitarian crisis in the country. Conflict internally displaced 3.5 million people and created 2.3 million refugees and asylum seekers, per UN figures.

At least 24 million people in Afghanistan are in need of humanitarian relief.