Grow Peace in Afghanistan: Educate Women & Girls

Thank you so much for your continued support to AAE, now a year after the fall of the democratic government. It has not been easy to rethink and reorganize our approach to educating women and girls, but we have worked to keep our promise to Afghanistan's women and girls to provide them a safe and effective path to quality education. 

Right now, we are managing 50 community-based education classrooms for girls in northern Afghanistan. We are also training teachers to educate students using an approach that encourages and enhances critical thinking skills, as opposed to rote memorization, which is common in public schools across Afghanistan. Our team is also working to distribute learning materials. 

We are also evaluating a response to the 5.9 magnitude earthquake that devastated southeastern Afghanistan in June. We have the relationships and networks to respond effectively, and are currently waiting on funding to get started. 

Thank you again for your support! We look forward to sharing more updates on educating women and girls in Afghanistan.

Thank you very much for your support of Aid Afghanistan for Education during this exceptionally difficult period for women and girls. It truly means so much to us.

After the collapse of the government, AAE has been faced with serious challenges. Girls’ secondary schools are no longer in operation. The de facto government has not delivered a clear perspective on coordination with the NGOs. The newly appointed officials in the education departments are not familiar with the system and processes and therefore, resulting in delays of distribution of the stationary and learning packages. In Afghanistan, schools are closed for three months in the winter, from the middle of December onward.

The financial restrictions added to the challenges. Banks have restricted access to funds. Like other NGOs, AAE could withdraw a small portion of funds, hardly covering the administrative costs. GlobalGiving is currently holding our donations until we can determine a safe route to transfer them, so your generous donations are safe.

AAE upgraded its organizational capacity to address the challenges and appropriately respond to the new context by hiring additional administrative staff, who have the ability and skills to communicate with the newly appointed individuals at the education departments. Along with the other NGOs, and local communities, AAE generated a substantial outreach capacity, which will serve its cause of broader outreach in upcoming months. We are tirelessly working with national and international NGOs to solve the banking problem.

AAE is working with a Qatar-based organization, Education for All, on producing and translating learning material in Farsi and Pashto. Based on arrangements with the communities, schools, and education departments, AAE trained and guided the staff to work with all primary schools to effectively implement the program by the start of the school year on March 21, 2022. Setting up Community Based Education classes and teacher training is the next step in order to reach out to the most marginalized Afghan children.

The outbreak of COVID-19 has adversely affected education in Afghanistan. Most parents couldn't pay the costs of their children in schools. Among them, women and girls are the most vulnerable.  

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the distribution of learning materials to the high marginalized students is among the highest priority for Aid Afghanistan for Education (AAE). Indeed, lack of learning materials negatively impacts the learning process and causing a high drop out rate in schools.  

In 2021, AAE will distribute learning materials and stationery to 5,000 highly marginalized students.  Additionally, AAE is working with the Ministry of Education to improve policy and programs for marginalized women and girls.

In this reporting period, AAE had distributed blackboards, chalks, books for library and stationery in schools in Kabul and Parwan provinces.

In Kabul, AAE donated 20 blackboards and 1,248 cartoons of chalk to Hakim Khesrow High School in Kabul city.  The distribution of blackboards and chalks will significantly contribute to the learning process of the students.

In Parwan, AAE had donated 265 books to libraries in Numan and Abdul Amiri schools in Parwan province, and stationery to students in these two schools.

Thank you so much for your continued support of education in Afghanistan.