At a Glance: Education Programs for Afghan Children and Women

Educating Afghan Children and Women in Pakistan Refugee Villages

Afghan children enjoying a day at school.

On March 23rd Afghan children by the thousands are expected to crowd back into makeshift schools to begin their studies of religion, native languages, English, chemistry, biology, math, geography and history. Most notably in the classrooms will be the girls, who have been prohibited from attending school for the past five years.

More than two decades of conflict and political uncertainty have drained Afghanistan's capacity to provide its children with a quality education. Many trained educators have fled the country, schools have been destroyed, and governing authorities preoccupied with war have failed to devote resources to education. International assistance has also focused on short-term humanitarian activities, which traditionally have not included education.

Throughout the conflict, Save the Children has provided structured primary education for displaced children in Afghanistan. Save the Children has been working with Afghans in refugee villages in Pakistan since 1985, and in Afghanistan since 1994. In addition to our health and economic opportunities programs, our efforts in education are designed to promote access to quality schooling for disadvantaged Afghan children and adults. Save the Children supports schools and informal education activities for nearly 45,000 children and women in Afghanistan and Afghan refugee villages, making Save the Children one of the lead agencies in Afghan education with an increasing focus on the quality of education and a commitment to equitable access for children and youth. Here are some compelling statistics:

Only 11 percent of girls in Afghanistan are able to read and write.
A mere 3 percent of girls and 39 percent of boys in Afghanistan are currently enrolled in schools.
Only 16 percent of females over 15 years old in Afghanistan are literate.
Only an estimated 35 percent of children in the Afghan refugee camps in Balochistan Province in Pakistan are enrolled in school.

Source: 2000 UNESCO Education For All Report on Afghanistan

Educating Children in Afghanistan

Save the Children continues to provide structured primary education for girls and boys of displaced families living in the old Soviet compound in Kabul. The school opened in January 2000 and in a little over one year, 2,400 children, including over 1,000 girls, were enrolled in Grade 1 and 2 classes. During a program evaluation in early 2001, many children and parents indicated that the classes were essential in supporting children's social and emotional well-being and in providing opportunities for learning reading and writing skills. Many of the families had fled fighting in areas that are now no longer under Taliban control, and a slight decline in students has been seen in recent days as families begin to return to their villages. Save the Children is investigating the possibility of returning with Internally Displaced Persons to ensure continued support for formal and informal education.

Save the Children also:

Has led a comprehensive effort to improve the educational environment for Afghan children inside Afghanistan and in refugee villages in cooperation with UNICEF. The "Education for Afghans" collaboration assessed educational needs and developed a strategic plan for increasing children's access to education, improving the quality of education, and strengthening the capacity of the education sector. Save the Children, UNICEF, and other organizations have used the plan to prioritize educational improvements and develop basic competencies for learning mathematics and languages for grades 1-6. Supplementary educational materials have also been developed, based on the Basic Competency guidelines and these have been adopted by the interim Ministry of Education as part of the new primary curriculum.
Provides landmine education for children in Kabul and the surrounding districts - still among the most heavily mined areas in the world - continuously since 1996. In 1999, we expanded the program to include children living at the former Soviet compound in the city, and children living in outlying districts. Through mid-2001, over 240,000 children had learned about the deadly dangers of landmines and unexploded ordnance
We also built 20 playgrounds in de-mined places in Kabul. We are currently building the capacity of our partner organizations so that they can integrate landmine education into other health and education activities. As Internally Displaced Persons and refugees begin to return home, often to places where mines and UXOs are a major problem, landmine education will be a life-saving activity and Save the Children is advocating for its inclusion into the new primary curriculum.
Works with local partners to provide informal child-focused health education led by adolescent girls and boys and teachers that provides around 3,000 children with an opportunity to learn about simple health messages and encouragement to practice healthy behaviors.

Educating Afghan Children and Women in Pakistan Refugee Villages

Save the Children began working in Afghan refugee villages in 1985 first in North West Frontier Province in Pakistan. In 1995, the organization was asked by the United Nations' High Commissioner for Refugees to become a primary partner in implementing educational programs in refugee villages in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. Since then, Save the Children has:

Dramatically expanded the number of primary schools and number of children enrolled, especially girls;
Launched home-based schooling for girls;
Started classroom initiatives to improve math and language learning outcomes such as teacher training and the use of Basic Competency guidelines
Introduced new educational resources including "libraries in a box,"
Initiated a school health and nutrition program.

In villages in the Balochistan region, Save the Children:

Manages and supports 43 primary schools and 58 home-based girls' schools that have a total enrollment of more than 16,000 girls and boys. During the past six years, enrollment rates have tripled from 6,000 to 16,000, and the numbers of girls enrolled have increased 10-fold from 600 to nearly 6,000. All the children also take part in a school health and nutrition initiative that seeks to improve their learning by improving their health and nutritional status.
Maintains a women's literacy program that focuses on developing reading, writing, and numeric skills. More than 900 women were participating in 55 separate groups in 2001; some 4,000 women have completed the program since 1995. In 2002, an early childhood component will be introduced into the program that aims to build the confidence of caregivers to support their children's social, emotional and cognitive development.
Supports and develops the capacity of Parent-Teacher Associations and Women's Education Committees to increase community involvement in education.

In Quetta City Save the Children works with urban refugees where we:

Provide textbooks, stationery and classroom resources such as "libraries in a box" to self-help schools that enroll some 12,000 children. We also encouraged schools to form an association and now provide support to build their organizational capacity.
Support a local NGO to operate drop-in centers for approximately 600 children who earn an income by sorting garbage. The center offers protection, medical aid, and the opportunity to take part in informal literacy and numeric activities.

In refugee villages in the Haripur District of the Northwest Frontier Province, Save the Children:

Maintains a women's literacy program that focuses on developing, reading, writing and numeric skills. Some 3,000 women are currently attending literacy centers in Haripur and, as in Balochistan, an early child development component will be introduced into the program.
Organizes informal child-focused health education groups led by adolescent girls and boys that provide children with an opportunity to learn about simple health messages and encouragement to practice healthy behaviors.
Has established six new primary schools to supplement the educational activities being provided by other organizations-especially for girls and in communities where there is no local school.