Zuhal Akbari has opened a pastry factory in Herat, western Afghan city. Most of the 11 women who work with her are university graduates who lost their jobs after the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021. Under the Taliban, women are barred from working in the public sector and for NGOs, getting a secondary and university education, traveling long distances without male relatives, and going to parks, public baths and gyms.