Learning Centers for Rural Afghan Women

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Fifteen years ago, The Yacoobi Foundation #8 was set up in Zargaran region, Bamyan Province. This Learning Center has128 students, all female. The center currently teaches Arabic,  literacy, English and sewing. In addition, this center has two educational branches in the Punjab district of Bamyan province.  Hundreds of women benefit from these centers, learning new skills which gives them more opportunity in life.

“I believe educational workshops help achieve social balance. By providing educational and awareness opportunities to all in society, social and economic disparities are reduced and everyone can experience greater productivity from community resources.” Sakena Yacoobi

One student at the center said, “My name is Hassana, and I am 30 years old. I have a hard life living in the cave of the mountain, near Shahmameh and Salsal in Bamyan. It has made me like a 50 year old with few skills.” The cave in which she lives lacks proper communication, no TV or cell phone or electricity.  Hosanna has 3 daughters and her husband was killed in the wars in Afghanistan. Hosanna  is afraid that she will die  and the fate of her children will be worse than what has happened to her. She  talked about having nothing to eat and waiting to see if a local person or passer-by would send them bread or help. Now, she has been sent by the school principal to the AIL health workshop and has more knowledge of how to care for her health and her children. She studies sewing and literacy at the center too.  

Thank you for your interest in AIL’s work in Afghanistan.

Lack of childcare is often an obstacle to women being able to access education. To help with this issue some of AIL’s Learning Centers have preschools. The preschools allow mothers  to attend classes while their children are taken care of. In May, there were 101 children in preschool classes at AIL centers.

AIL also runs a kindergarten in Kabul and in the month of May there were 179 pupils, 79 female.  There was a graduation ceremony for 25 of the children and one of them had this to say:

“I am Saba and I liked kindergarten, my teacher has done a lot  for me. When my mother enrolled me to this kindergarten, I was crying because I did not want to come to the kindergarten, I thought that it might be a place that beat the children. My mother said that the kindergarten is a nice place where children can play games and learn knowledge. It took several weeks for me to stop crying.

Everyday my teacher said positive things about kindergarten but I could not accept it. But after two months my opinion changed. I used to kindergarten and liked it, I loved my teacher and my kind and nice classmates. I learned so many things such as some Arabic, Alphabets, Poems and so many other things and it was fun.”

So far this year, 8,248 people attended AIL Learning Centers, 5,379 of them female. There are 21 centers across 11 provinces, including one kindergarten. These centers provide life changing education in subjects such as literacy, sewing, math, computing and English and many more topics.

Thank you for your interest in AIL’s work in Afghanistan.