Egypt’s Dar al-Ifta stated that educating women is a religious obligation equal to that of men, emphasizing that Islam does not differentiate between the two in the pursuit of knowledge. Through its official page, the Fatwa House noted that the Prophet’s wives were among the first to transmit and teach Islam, and that numerous women throughout Islamic history became scholars, jurists, and narrators of hadith—among them over 1,500 female scholars recorded by Ibn Hajar in Al-Isabah fi Tamyiz al-Sahabah.
Meanwhile, Al-Azhar Observatory for Combating Extremism stressed that Islam established the foundations of knowledge as the cornerstone of civilization and progress, with the very first revealed word being “Read in the name of your Lord who created.” The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ provided women with dedicated lessons, sermons, and entrusted them with preserving and transmitting hadith, with Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) standing among the most prominent scholars of her time.
The Observatory warned against extremist ideologies that misinterpret Islamic texts to marginalize women and restrict their right to learn, stressing that such views stem from cultural distortion rather than religion. The Prophet ﷺ declared, “Women are the twin halves of men,” affirming equality in spiritual worth and moral responsibility.
Depriving women of education, the statement added, not only violates a divine right but also hinders societal development. Nations that restrict women’s education inevitably regress in intellect and progress. True Islam, however, views female education as an investment in the nation’s present and future, for through educated women, societies build strong generations and sustainable advancement.
