Turkey’s Maarif Foundation (TMV) schools in Afghanistan are a beacon of a better future for students.

The foundation offers free education to dozens of orphaned boys and girls in its schools and educational centers across the country, which strives to recover from decades of war and hardships.

Under the collective name of Afghan-Turk Maarif Schools, TMV's schools in Afghanistan include 53 venues in eight provinces, from primary schools to middle and high schools and smaller educational centers. The TMV also runs 11 dormitories.

The Taliban takeover last year did not stop the foundation's activities, which opened three new centers after the Taliban forced the Kabul government out. Some 6,300 students attend Maarif schools, and about 40% of them are girls.

The schools grant scholarships to students after an exam, and some 100 orphans now benefit from the scholarships. Half of them stay at TMV-run dormitories.

Maryam Nurzay, 16, is among the students who passed the schools' admission exam and won a scholarship. Nurzay attends a girls’ school in Herat. After her father’s death 13 years ago, Maryam’s mother fell into economic hardship and struggled to make ends meet, taking up odd jobs. When Maryam saw the ads for the Maarif school exam at a school where her aunt taught, she decided to take the exam.

"I worked hard and passed the exam. It was like a dream to go to a school like this," she told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Thursday. "My life has changed. The TMV helped me, and they cover all my education expenses," she said. The young girl said she is the "second most successful student" in her class now and aspires to become a doctor in the future. "I want to study abroad if I can and return to Afghanistan to serve my people," she said.

Her mother Laila, who works in Badghis, some four hours’ drive from Herat, said she has little money but works hard to keep her daughter in school. "I am grateful to the TMV. I want my daughter to study further in Turkey. She is a hard-working girl, and I always knew she would pass the exam," she said.

Turkey is among the favored destinations for Afghan students seeking education abroad. Maarif schools are viewed as a path to this opportunity by students pursuing university scholarship options in Turkey. Sayyed Habib Husaini, currently in his last year at the Herat Boys’ High School run by the TMV, is among the students planning to study in Turkey. Husaini lost his father 15 years ago and his elder brother supports the family.

"I want to study computer engineering and hope to improve my skills more with a university education in Turkey or any other country," he said. Husaini said the Maarif school gives them a better education compared to its competitors and options to study abroad once they graduate.

"I had no means to attend such a school, but I won the scholarship. I am pleased to be able to attend. This is a quality school," Amidullah Inzitar, a student in the 10th grade who lost his father seven years ago, said.

Salih Sağır, TMV's representative in Afghanistan, said they are now the largest private school network in Afghanistan, and people have asked them to open more schools in the country. Sağır told AA that they prioritized the education of the orphaned kids, and they are also offering Turkish language courses at Afghanistan’s orphanages.

"Orphaned students are far more accomplished than others studying without scholarships. We see this in their marks," he said. He added that along with education, they also provide psychiatric support. Sağır noted that their schools also served as an intermediary for Turkey’s other scholarship programs for international students.

TMV schools are among the most prestigious education institutions in Afghanistan. Along with local languages and English, the schools offer Turkish classes and math, chemistry, physics and biology classes in English, with Arabic as an elective course.