Continuing the Commitment to Afghanistan

Between 2018 and 2019, BBS partnered with Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan and SALEHO to deliver an adult literacy program in six villages in the Wakhan Corridor.

This remote region of Afghanistan has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world and literacy is a top prioirty identified by the Wahki people.

The focus of our work, which was delivered by the local non-profit SALEHO, was on improving adult literacy rates through a program designed specifically for adult learners and delivered by local teachers trained on program delivery from master trainers.

The villages that participated in this program were Qazdeh, Vark, Shkharv, Kushnikhan, Worgund Payan and Worgund Bala. In total, 242 students enrolled in 12 classes with 20 students per class and 2 shifts of teaching each day. To support the literacy classes, 8 libraries were opened and local villagers trained as libarians.

Project Highlights:

Training of literacy teachers and Master Trainers were conducted twice (first session in Faizabad and the second in Shekharv Village of Wakhan District);
All the required furniture, training materials, books etc. have been provided and distributed to the students;
Twelve literacy classes were established;
The evaluation report of the students, based on the three tests, shows high knowledge of the students (70% received high achievements);
Regular supervision and monitoring of the classes have been done by the Project Manager and MoE teams;
Training on librarianship and reading promotion was conducted in July 2019;
Eight libraries have been established and the students, teachers and local people are benefiting;
The report of students’ attendance sheets shows 94% present during the months of May – June 2019.

The photos below are from the graduation ceremony in November, 2019.

Donate Now

Our commitment to Afghanistan continues with a shift to advocacy and keeping the stories of Afghans in the forefront. Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, Chadari Project and the think tank Heart of Asia Society are three of the organisations that we are working with today.

Donations made through this page will be designated to the advocacy work of our partners.

As a thank you, donors will receive a copy of The Peaceful Afghanistan.

“Education is a basic, universal human right. The people of Afghanistan have demonstrated an intense demand for education, for both girls and boys, since this right once again fell within their grasp following the end of the Taliban regime in late 2001. We are pleased to respond to this demand with a focus on access to quality education. We also recognize the link between quality education and peace building, and believe that a literate population with access to viable education and economic opportunities will be Afghanistan’s greatest stabilizing force and it’s best hope for a lasting peace.”

An Excerpt from the Peaceful Afghanistan:

A unique blend of cultural, ethnic, and linguistic traditions exist here, and – when combined with its isolated location – serve to create a pocket sealed off from the currents of history. Within these confines, the migration of conflict that oft comes with ethnic diversity and conflicting cultures – as so starkly witnessed by the rest of the region – remains limited.

Though a source of its harmony, this isolation also brings with it strife. Limited access to education, healthcare, fresh produce and cross-border trade means that more than one half of the population will die before the age of five. Most families within Wakhan will lose anywhere from three to eleven children in their lifetimes. Although money exists, trade operates as the major currency, and survival hinges on the success of every negotiation.

Though faced with these incomprehensible hardships, the people of Wakhan seek no alternative homelands. Neighbouring regions exist in perpetual conflict within the throws of war, and the Taliban struggle for control in communities not far off. When offered the choice between these systems of unrest or the hardships endured within their long-held isolation, its inhabitants choose the latter.

July 2020

Certificates of Achievement for the Literacy Program

BBS would like to thank the following people and organisations for their generous support

Frank Gounelas
Geoff Bedford
Ioannis Exarchos
Jamshid Sultanzada
Laurie DeBoer
LBKT Farms Limited
Linda Sekura
Linsey Flannery

Maltec Leichtbautechnologie
Mark Quigley
Matin Zamani
Michael Marcus
Molly Hollihan
Natalie Osborne
Neo Performance Materials

Pauline Niebur
Peter Johnston
Peter Kruyt
Samuel Plagnard
Sara James
Scott Gillespie
Stefanos Kourelas

Sylvia Hirsche Memorial Library
Sylvia Liu
Taber Memorial Library
Tonya Tecca
Tracy Driscoll
Viva, Beijing Professional Women’s Association
Wray Armstrong