Grow Peace in Afghanistan: Educate Women & Girls

We believe that all women in Afghanistan should have equal access to education, no matter their age, marital status, or if they ever left Afghanistan as a refugee. Many of our students are older, married, or lived in Pakistan or Iran during the years of war. After returning to Afghanistan, no public schools would take them because of their age—many weren’t able to attend school during their time abroad. As a result, they are behind in their education and need an accelerated curriculum to catch up. That’s where AAE comes in.

Recently, two graduates have joined the AAE team as interns in the finance department. Sahebjaan is 25 years old and graduated from AAE in 2016. After spending 14 years in Pakistan as a refugee—the majority of her life—she returned to Kabul at age 18 with only a sixth-grade education. She learned about AAE through her friends and is focused on finding a job so she can continue her education at university. Listen to Sahebjaan talk about her life.

Nafisa, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, lived as a refugee in Pakistan for ten years. She graduated in 2015 after starting sixth grade at age 17 and is enjoying learning about finance and office skills. She’s hoping to gain skills to help her find a job to pay for university, just like Sahebjaan. University tuition is around $100 a month. By learning how nonprofits work from the inside out, Nafisa and Sahebjaan are discovering new ways to give back to their country.

We’re so happy to have these brilliant graduates join our finance team! By working with them and teaching them about the financial aspects of nonprofits, we hope to support their long-term dreams and goals.

The AAE team would also like to extend our deepest thanks to you and the GlobalGiving community for a wonderful 2017. We raised a total of $49,172 from 118 donors, which included $7,520 from recurring donations. Thank you all for an incredible year!