"We were happy to hear the programs were resuming because that means we can learn again and above all we can help our family financially as it feels very painful when our children ask for food and we don’t have anything to feed them."
Women for Women International's Afghanistan Response
What is Women for Women International doing to respond to the situation in Afghanistan?
We’re thrilled to share that after pausing the programs for security reasons in August 2021, we have now reopened our first training center in Afghanistan. We have enrolled 350 Afghan women so far, across two training centres that were reopened in Nangahar province.
Program participants expressed feeling very emotional when they learned the centres were reopening. It has given them much needed hope. One of them shared:
"Thank you for thinking of us and not forgetting us in our critical times."
Our normal Stronger Women, Stronger Nations program provides cash, training, business skills, and referrals to services such as psychosocial support for women survivors of war and conflict. Over the past few decades, we’ve reached more than 120,000 women in Afghanistan, and we hope to increase services for those who are displaced and those who need us most now.
Thanks to your incredible generosity, in addition to the kitchen garden and poultry kits, we will be giving all the women in our programs $50 to help with the urgent need for food, warm clothing, and blankets during the cold winter months in Afghanistan. This is on top of the regular monthly training stipend.
There are millions of Afghans facing starvation as the country grapples with economic crisis and continuing conflict. After calling on the international community to do more, Women for Women International is pleased to see some countries promising to help but more aid and a lifting of sanctions is desperately needed to prevent a humanitarian disaster.
This also means giving power to women in Afghanistan by including them in the decision-making process to rebuild the country. The last 20 years have demonstrated women to be powerful agents of change benefiting society as a whole – we cannot turn our backs on them now.
How can I help women in Afghanistan now?
You can make an emergency contribution to help us reach as many women as possible in Afghanistan right now. DONATE NOW >>
In their own words, Afghan women call for women’s rights, inclusion in public life, urgent economic relief, and for the international community to step up in solidarity with them. READ REPORT >>
Reopening Details
In the sessions that the women attended for the first time since our centers reopened, they shared their excitement at being able to meet in person. They were very appreciative of having a safe space where they could share their anxieties, their fears, and challenges in adapting to the new government. They were very happy to be able to resume their training, learn again and receive support to feed their families. VIEW PHOTOS >>
As winter continues, the threat of famine is real. Your donation will provide garden kits, cash transfers, and psychological first aid for women in need.