Gender Equality Afghanistan Project #6083

Help Educate Women & Girls in Afghanistan

by Sahar Education

Help Educate Women & Girls in Afghanistan

Project Report | May 1, 2017
Afghan Girls are the Future!

By Ginna Brelsford | Executive Director

Stories from the Afghan girls that Sahar serves do a fantastic job of describing the impact that YOU make possible. Getting a chance to see the challenges the young women face and how they address those challenges is the real testament to what you make possible through your contribution to this project.

***

Abiba, just as many other young women in Afghanistan, wants to continue her education, she wants to find work to help and provide for her family. She made the long journey, of almost 40 minutes in the back of the a Zarang (small opened back rickshaw), daily for two years. We are happy to report that she was committed to the Teacher Training program and graduated after two years.

As with Abiba, many students have a desire for more, continued education, a career, a family, and many other scenarios. In Afghanistan those opportunities are met with a lot of opposition and lack of opportunity. Sahar's Teacher Training Cener was an opportunity, a dream of continuing education for Abiba. The opposition she faces to these opportunities comes in the form social pressure, cultural conservative thinking, distance from the opportunity, lack of security etc. The issues are more complex than we can begin to explain here. Abiba gives us a glimpse into some of these issues.

Once Abiba finished studying at the TTC she wanted to go on and find work as a teacher or go on to a higher college. Her specific field of study as a teacher was to become a science teacher. Abiba is from a village in a very rural area. Rural areas tend to be more conservative than other areas. Despite this her family encouraged and supported her to go to the Teacher Training Center. Along with many others, she commuted daily to and from the Dawlatabad center in an effort to increase opportunity for her future. Abiba graduated the program with a certificate from the Government of Afghanistan saying she finished the program and had passed the Teacher Training Center with two years of training. Many students don’t go beyond this point because they can’t, because there are no jobs available close to home or based on the fact that the Ministry of Education did not choose them from the many applicants. Abiba went on to apply for a job through the Ministry of Education, just as many others did. She took the test administered by the Ministry of Education to see if she could be placed as teacher somewhere, but she was not chosen as a final candidate for job placement.

While for many this would be a setback enough to stop moving forward, Abiba did not give up. She has sought help from her family to go to a private university. Her family denied her this opportunity because they cannot afford to pay for this. So on her own she went outside of her immediate family to another family member to seek a loan to go on to this private university. She has worked out an arrangement with this family member to pay them back in the future after she graduates and finds employment. Abiba said to us that, “One of my big dreams is to finish my education.” Currently Abiba is pursuing her dream studying in the Science Faculty at a Private University, called Mawlana University. Despite these setbacks she has not given up. Sahar's Teacher Training Center was a crucial stepping stone for her after high school, bridging the gap to University.

***

What we learn from Abiba's story is the strong desire to persue education by Afghan women. The challenges they face can be overwhelming but your support is creating opportunities for them to acheive their goals. Thank you.

Permalink

Feb 21, 2017
Investing in the education of girls in Afghanistan

By Ginna Brelsford | Executive Director

Thank you for donating to our project to educate Afghan Girls. Thanks to you, Sahar is able to provide girls with the basics of education as well as unique job training opportunities in computers and conduct workshops of early marriage prevention.

To date, Sahar has built 19 schools, updated 20+ and impacted over 28,000 girls in our schools and programs annually and over 200,000 since our inception.

Education may seem like a simple action but in a nation ravaged by war for the last several decades, we are a long ways off from achieving our goals of gender parity in the Afghanistan education system. We at Sahar have seen tremendous change in the status of girls and women. Providing quality education experiences is about more than just getting more girls into the classroom, it is about empowering them to be free, creative thinkers who can engage in the public discussion of their country’s culture and politics and be respected and heard. Sahar is inspired by the girls we serve and we are excited to continue our work - we see tremendous growth in our capability to make providing education to girls a reality.

Hajareh, 17, shares her story below to demonstrate what education can mean in the life of a girl.

"After the fall of the Taliban, schools began again. Any girl interested in getting education could to school. I wanted to go as well. So I talked to my father about it. He did not give me permission to go to the school. I was very sad. I kept asking him why I could not go to school. He responded that the school is not a place for a girl, and that every girl that does attend is simply shameless. I argued with him and responded that learning was for both men and women, not just men. We, as girls, have the right to learn. I told him, my future and our family's future could be so bright. After the conversation with my father, he thought for a while and then said that I was right. I have to go to school, and that knowledge could be valuable. That is how I convinced my father to let me go to school. I am proud of it.

Fortunately, today I am now in 11th grade. Sahar has also provided us with computers. I like learning about computers and using them. We still have some problems and we requested to build laboratory room, school walls, a sports lot / sport field, drinking water well, and professional teachers. I believe these things need attention and are important for a better school.

Thank you implementing projects in my school. Your help will strengthen the students’ minds and knowledge for a brighter future. Because of your help with my education, I believe, I can defend myself from any kind of oppression. "

Hajareh delayed marriage as well as early childbirth. It is a well known fact that an educated mother is more likely to ensure that her children also receive an education - breaking the cycle of extreme poverty and maternal illnesses. Hajareh will likely continue her studies and be able to contribute to her family's economic situation. Her efforts will make an enormous difference. She is an example of how educating one girl is having a ripple effect on the entire family.

This is fantastic news and thanks to your support of our computer centers, library books and the buildings for Hajareh to study in, her success is moving to the next level of education.

Permalink

Jan 3, 2017
The Importance of Education

By Ginna Brelsford | Executive Director

Education may seem like a simple action in a nation ravaged by war for the last several decades, but we have seen tremendous change in the status of girls and women. Providing quality education experiences is about more than just getting more girls into the classroom, it is about empowering them to be free, creative thinkers who can engage in the public discussion of their country’s culture and politics and be respected and heard. We are a long ways off from achieving our goals of gender parity in the Afghanistan education system, but we continue to see tremendous growth in our capability to make this a reality.

Sahar now offers early marriage prevention workshops throughout the year. Since the launch of this pilot project in 2015, we have graduated 625 girls. Our most recent workshop included 26 9th grade girls who heard guest speakers discuss career opportunities for those who stay in school, graduate and delay marriage. The workshops begin with community meetings that include families - especially fathers - religious leaders, the Ministry of Education, principals and community members that are involved in deciding the future of girls. The pilot project is operating in two rural schools.

We’ve had a total of 2,592 students graduate from our computer centers as of 2016. providing girls with valuable training. The top graduates of the centers will now be eligible to apply for an innovative girls computer coding program that will begin this winter. The program aims to provide the girls with skills that will enable them to work in the computer industry and/or gain entry into a technical training program or university.

To date, Sahar has built 19 schools, updated 20+ and impacted over 28,000 girls in our schools and programs annually and over 200,000 since our inception. However, the need for more schools and access to education is still growing. Afghanistan's need for education remains daunting with over 40% of their population school aged children. With your help we can continue to provide these opportunities as we aim to make Afghanistan a safer place through education.

Permalink

‹ 1 ... 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 ... 22 ›

About Project Reports

Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.