Women as a half of the society can play an important role in the political and social future of a society. Nowadays, the presence of women in the world of governance is considered as one of the key characteristics of democracy and ways of development in a society. Therefore, the development of a society is not possible without the growth and participation of half of its members (women). Afghanistan’s political system is based on elections and equal citizenship rights, so women have the equal rights of political participation as men. Today, 27 per cent of the Afghan parliament is represented by women, more than 150,000 women serve as local government officials, and over 6,000 women serve in the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF).

This article tries to give a brief overview of the historical background of women’s presence in governance in Afghanistan, especially their participation in the political arena, the status of women’s political participation in the Afghan constitution, Afghanistan’s international commitments to women’s rights and its achievements in this field.