Afghanistan Projects

Skills Development in Herat

In 2009, as an outflow of our Community Development Project, Global Partners began a Skills Development Project that would aim to provide skills training for villagers that could help generate sustainable income at the village level.
In the initial pilot project, Skills Development 1 (SDP 1), twelve beneficiaries (4 women and 8 men) received vocational on-the-job training, supplemented with training in literacy skills, basic health and social education, and basic business skills training. Details are as follows:
• 1 teenage boy in repairing of motorcycle.
• 1 young man in embroidery.
• 2 teenage boys in tailoring.
• 1 teenage boy in repairing of punctured tires.
• 2 women (1 widow) in tailoring.
• 2 women in computer and English.
• 1 woman in hairdressing.
• 1 teenage boy in plumbing.
• 1 teenage boy (disabled-blind of one eye) in repairing of cabinet.

Training for these 12 trainees was completed on June 20, 2010. Graduation certificates were prepared and distributed to graduated students by Global Partners in Herat, and the Department of Work and Social Affairs and Department of Martyrs and Disabled. In October the 12 graduate trainees were each visited for a three month post-graduation follow-up / evaluation interview. 10 of them were making good progress in their respective professions, though several admitted that the first month had been difficult and sometimes they had despaired of ever making a living. However, these all could see that after three months things were improving, their business and clientele were increasing and looked set to continue to do so.

In April 2010 funding for a second cycle of SDP was secured and 50 beneficiaries started training in mid July. In preparation for the second cycle of training (SDP 2), official agreement for the implementation of SDP 2 was obtained from the Departments of Economy, Labour and Social Affairs, and Martyrs and Disabled of Herat Province. 50 trainees (including 12 women) were selected in accordance with project criteria, and assigned to 42 master-craftsmen (and women) who would conduct the training, in the bazaars of Herat city and the village of Karukh’s district centre. Training began in mid-July and will continue for 9 months:
• A total of 19 trainees who were illiterate were introduced to literacy teachers or courses.
• Staff visit each trainee 2 to 3 times each week to evaluate and monitor progress and attendance in their skill learning, as well as literacy classes where applicable.
• Classes in Basic Health and Social Education (BHSE) and Basic Business Skills Training were started for all trainees in December.

The number of trainees learning each skill is shown in the following chart:

Skill# stdsSkill# stdsSkill# stds
TV / Radio repair2Plumber4Computer repair1
Tailor10Refrigerator repair1Electrician1
Wiring / Electric motor repair1Mobile phone repair2Mechanic1
Metalwork2Carpenter1Glasswork 1
Dent fixing2Barber1Embroidery1
Puncture repair1Cooler repair3Women’s hairdresser5
Motorbike repair2Sign writing1Women’s tailor7

Facts About Afghanistan

  • Area: 652,230 sq. km.
  • Borders: China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
  • Arable Land: 12.13%
  • Natural Hazards: Earthquakes, droughts, flooding
  • Population: 29,835,392 (July 2011 est.)
  • Urban Population: 23% of total population (2010)
  • Infant Mortality Rate: 149.2 deaths / 1,000 live births (#2 in world)
  • Life Expectancy at Birth: 45.02 years
  • Literacy (age 15+ can read and write): 28.1% (Male: 43.1%; Female: 12.6%)
  • GDP - per capita (PPP): $900 USD (2010 est.)

More About Afghanistan:

The population of Afghanistan is about thirty million. Pashtuns are the predominant ethnic group in Afghanistan, comprising forty-two percent of the population. Other ethnic groups include the Tajiks (twenty-seven percent), Hazaras (nine percent), Uzbeks (nine percent) and other minority groups such as the Aimak, Turkmen and Baluch. Dari is the official language of the government. However, many other languages are spoken in Afghanistan, including Pashtu, Hazaragi, Uzbek, and Turkmen. Religiously, Afghanistan is over ninety-nine percent Muslim, with an estimated eighty percent Sunni Muslims and an estimated nineteen percent Shiite Muslims.

Read a brief history of Afghanistan

Today, Global Partners works alongside the United Nations and many other international NGOs to provide essential development and support. Afghanistan's infrastructure, such as roads, electricity, and water sanitation, is in poor condition. Medical care is lacking, especially in rural areas. This results in a national life expectancy of only forty-five years, the second highest infant mortality rate in the world, and the highest rate of maternal mortality. Furthermore, the educational system is struggling to recover after decades of war; less than thirty percent of men are literate and only about thirteen percent of women. Cultivation of poppies also remains a significant concern, as Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of opium. Although there has been a great deal of reconstruction in the past ten years, much, much more is needed in order to alleviate poverty, provide adequate health care, create economic opportunities, and educate the next generation.