A Place of Hope for Displaced Afghan Women
By: Karadah Project International
Tags: Afghanistan, Afghan Women, Economic Development, Humanitarian Aid, Internally Displaced

The number of forcibly displaced persons has rushed over 80 million in 2021 — the largest number in the history of our world and almost double the number of just a decade ago. Imagine that. One percent of the human population of the world — one in every 97 people — is now uprooted and at the mercy of circumstances they cannot control. It is unrelenting and overwhelming in its upward climb.

The numbers of refugees, those moving across country borders, is a staggering 26.3 million of the 80 million forcibly displaced worldwide. These are the people we see on the news, the ones who have made it out of their home countries. Afghanistan ranks third among this number at 2.7 million people. Developing countries — those least able to bear the burden of refugees — host 86 per cent of the world’s refugees displaced abroad. The least developed countries provide asylum to 28 per cent of the total. This represents a critical threat to peace and stability everywhere.

But what of the rest of the forcibly displaced? Internally displaced people, those who are hidden in the shadows of their own countries and most likely to become refugees in neighbor countries, represent an astounding 45.7 million people. These are the people at the lowest rungs of support from fragile and insecure governments and far from the focused attention of the media. They are the most vulnerable, huddled in makeshift camps and thrown-together communities. Neighbors may speak a different language or dialect. Each comes with the suspicions born of deprivation, violence, poverty, abuse, and disrupted lives.

In Afghanistan, there are more than 4 million internally displaced people. Most of these are women and children. Women face the added challenges of discrimination, few employment opportunities, lack of education, and other debilitating obstacles to self-sufficiency. The normal societal safety nets of extended family and community support are absent when living in the unfamiliar displacement camps. In spite of these almost insurmountable challenges, women find ways to adapt. Their real modern-day heroism is in their capacity to survive in the inhospitable environment they find themselves.

There is a place where displaced Afghan women are given an opportunity to build a better life for themselves and for their families. In and around Herat, Afghanistan, there are over 19,600 displaced women, children, and men in at least five displacement camps. The women and children in these camps are the focus of a primary partnership between the Afghan women-founded nonprofit Women Education for Better Tomorrow and veteran-founded Karadah Project International. It is a partnership focused on providing the means for displaced Afghan women to become self-sufficient.

Imagine a place where committed Afghan women dedicate their energies and efforts to improving the lives of displaced women, who’ve only known the bitterness of war, violence, poverty, and disruption. Women receive marketable skills, business training, literacy instruction, gender-specific legal resources, post-training support, and the association and support of other women. Given resources and education, these heroic women will be the catalyst for economic growth and increased opportunities for their children.

“Women’s economic participation and their ownership and control of productive assets speeds up development, helps overcome poverty, reduces inequalities and improves children’s nutrition, health, and school attendance. Women typically invest a higher proportion of their earnings in their families and communities than men.” (The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)

We continue to expand our programs to further support the self-sufficiency hopes of the women with whom we work. Food vouchers provided through our partnership with the World Food Program allow the women to focus on gaining skills without the worry of feeding their families. We provide child care for their little ones. The critical importance of pre-primary education has inspired us to create a kindergarten for their children and a mentoring process to integrate these children into the public school system.

In a world where complex and tangled problems seem intractable and insurmountable, where the millions of displaced people are too much to even contemplate, there’s a place where we can change the world for women with names and families and hopes for a better future. In their own words, hear the impact a small investment can make in the lives of women and imagine what a generational difference it will make in the lives of their children.

“From the first day I enrolled in the course, I learned so many things in the carpet weaving class. I now have an income and can weave from home and support my family. Thank you all for helping us to learn these skills. I really appreciate it…I have suffered a really hard life. My dream is to have a home and start a business with my carpet-weaving skills.” “I began participating because my husband is addicted to drugs and I must care for my four little boys. I learned many things from the carpet weaving classes. I now know how to weave the carpet and it helps me to not have to leave my children to go clean homes. I am coming to these classes to learn skills so that I can help my family.”

“We now have an income to buy rice and oils. We learn these skills and get food vouchers. These skills enable us to stay and work at home where we can care for our children. Before the program, we worked in the houses as cleaners and earned very little money. After joining these classes, we can now help our children and save. Thank you for bringing a change in my life!”

“If their husbands are jobless, these women can support their families. Step by step the society can improve. I am an example of an Afghan woman who works. I am a widow and I have seven children. If I don’t work, who will support my family? My children go to school now because of my income.” “After attending these classes and spending time with the other women and teachers, I noticed psychological improvement. I can share my problems with the other women and get some help from them…These classes help me to feel strong by being able to work. These classes have empowered me.”

I spent almost a decade in and out of deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan as a US Army officer. I carry with me memories of great need and devastation, but also of friendships with people of courage and commitment to making their countries better. I founded Karadah Project to honor those brave Iraqi and Afghan friends, some of whom have been killed and many who continue to risk their lives in the pursuit of peace and stability. I am inspired every day by their courage, commitment, and dedication to making their communities safer and more prosperous.

Please join us in providing hope to displaced Afghan women and a better future for their children.

Click. Contribute. Change the World.

www.karadahproject.com

LTC (retired) Rick Burns is founder and president of Karadah Project International, an Iowa nonprofit corporation focused on Afghanistan and Iraq.