Nangarhar officials, citing numbers by the Directorate of Education, said that 450 out of 905 schools in the province are without buildings, and students are studying in the open air.

TOLOnews reporter Abdulhaq Omeri visited a girls’ school in Jalalabad city, the capital of Nangarhar, and reported that the entire body of 1,000 students was studying outside, without facilities.

“This year, 208 schools will be built in Nangarhar. Eight more schools will be built by the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development,” Nangarhar Education Director Hasibullah Shinwari said.

According to Shinwari, Nangarhar has at least 850,000 students in 950 schools.

“We are in the city and we don’t have buildings--imagine how the situation must be for schools in rural areas,” said Romal Saadat, a teacher.

Students described the difficulties caused by the weather.

“We get wet during the winter. We face lots of problems during the winter. There is a lot of noise from outside. We want textbooks as well,” said Saira, a student in Nangahar.

Sakina, another student, said: “Our classes are very warm in the summer and very cold during the winter.”

Some teachers also mentioned that they lack textbooks.