The National Examination Authority (NEXA) announced the holding of the final medical exam of the Medical Council (Exit Exam) and the Public Health master’s program of Kabul Medical University.

According to figures, nearly 4,000 candidates participated in the exam, and there were no women among the participants.

The chairman of NEXA, Abdul Baqi Haqqani, pledged transparency in the process and emphasized that Afghanistan is falling behind in the medical sector compared to other countries in the region.

"We are weak in the health sector, and it requires a lot of attention. In the health sector, we are falling behind. We fall significantly behind compared to other nations,” Haqqani said.

According to Gul Mohammad Osman, director of the Afghanistan Medical Council, the exam for women has been postponed since there isn't a particular procedure for them, and the new procedure has been sent to the leader of the Islamic Emirate for approval.

“Sadly, neither we nor other organizations, such as the Ministry of Higher Education, the Public Health Department, or the NEXA, had any particular procedures for taking the test so that we could give the exam to girls,” Osman said.

According to Ziaullah Hashemi, a NEXA spokesman, there are 3,300 candidates for the Medical Council exam and in order to pass, they must receive 216 marks. Of the almost 600 applicants for the master's program, 30 will move on to the next round.

"The exam of 3,300 candidates in the Exit Exam of the Afghanistan Medical Council was taken, and those who have answered 60% of the questions correctly will succeed, that is, the one who receives 60% of the score," Hashemi said.

No women participated in nearly ten exams conducted by the National Examination Authority (NEXA).