Project Report
| Aug 16, 2017
Role Models make a difference for Afghan girls
By Ginna Brelsford | Executive Director
Thank you for your support of Sahar's Early Marriage Prevention Program! This program isn't possible without you.
In Afghanistan, women and girls are faced with many challenges - low female literacy rates, high maternity mortality rates, low female involvement in the official economy, and high rates of early marriage are all daily realities, not just statistics. Given these circumstances, the importance of investing in them is critical to a just and peaceful future of Afghanistan. Through your donation, you are showing your commitment to this future. The Afghan women and girls thank you for this.
The single most impactful part of our early marriage prevention iniative is the guest speakers we bring into the classroom - these guest speakers share their journey. Almost all of the guest speakers are women in different career sectors - lawyers, doctors, journalists, etc. They open up to the students and share both their struggles and their successes. Through the guest speaker series, the students begin to see possible futures for themselves. Consider the below story from Zahra, one of the 10th graders attending the program:
“Before coming to this training I had the wish to become a president, but I thought it was only a wish and that for me becoming a president was impossible. Now, after having gone through this training, I know for sure that I can be a future president. I know and believe that nothing is impossible. Everyday after the training I went home and told my parents and siblings everything I had learned that day. Attending this training has totally changed my life. As a result, I now find myself very interested in reading books and learning.”
Zahra is just one of the hopeful girls in the program. Not only is she seeking to change her future, but she is also engaging her family, uplifting them all through this process. The early marriage prevention intiative will continue empowering young girls like Zahra. You have been a vital piece in the investment of Afhgan girls. Thank you for believing in their future.