Academic brain drain raised by MPs after years of denial
The number of students and academics fleeing Iran, including many top professors, is causing a sizeable brain drain and has reached such high levels that it is being openly discussed in the Iranian parliament, after years of government denial.
In the past, the government has denied that a major problem exists, but oppressive regime tactics coupled with crippling international sanctions and salaries made uncompetitive by the falling currency value have led to more and more highly educated Iranians fleeing the country.
The protracted issue was brought to the forefront again during a Majles-e Showra-ye Eslami (parliament) session in the capital Tehran this month when lawmakers from different regions of the country expressed concern that the talent exodus could aggravate the country’s economic crisis.
Kabul University sets up new innovation centre for women
The Afghan government has laid the foundation for a new technical and innovation centre for women and girls at Kabul University under the leadership of Roya Mahboob, head of the Afghanistan all-female robotics team.
The new centre dubbed ‘Roya Pardazan’ or Dreamer Centre aims to provide technical and vocational training for girls in all four zones of the war-ravaged country, hoping to rebrand Afghanistan as a hub of technical excellence.
Mahboob, an Afghan IT entrepreneur, heads the non-profit Digital Citizen Fund based in Herat, which teaches girls coding and IT skills. More than 3,000 girls in Herat have studied at the Digital Citizen Fund, and the city’s university now has its largest number of women computer scientists.