A total of 350 Afghan students have recently arrived in Pakistan to continue their education under the prestigious Allama Muhammad Iqbal Scholarship Program, according to reports by Pakistani media outlets.

The initiative is part of a broader educational collaboration between Pakistan and Afghanistan, overseen by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan to support Afghan youth facing limited academic opportunities at home.

As per Dawn newspaper's report on Saturday, July 5, the newly arrived students are part of the initial batch under the scholarship scheme. Further groups are expected to follow later this year.

Specifically, 50 PhD candidates and 100 Master's degree students are set to arrive in September to begin their studies at universities across Pakistan. The remaining seats are likely to be filled in phases.

These scholarships, offered by Pakistan's Higher Education Commission (HEC), are part of a major government initiative to award 4,500 scholarships to Afghan students over a three-year period.

Significantly, a photo shared by Pakistan's Higher Education Commission shows Afghan female students among the scholarship recipients, signaling a hopeful opportunity amid ongoing educational restrictions for women in Afghanistan.

Since regaining control of Afghanistan, the Taliban have imposed sweeping bans on education for girls and women, shutting them out from schools and universities - making such regional scholarship programs critically important.

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