$25-Provide a child with school supplies (Books, Paper, Pens, Pencils, Backpack)
Afghanistan continues to have one of the highest rates of out-of-school children globally, with over 3.7 million children missing out on education (60% girls). Key barriers include conflict/insecurity, poverty, lack of schools/teachers, and cultural norms restricting girls’ education. This project aims to set up low-cost community education centers to provide educational opportunities locally.
The Afghan Relief Education Centers play a crucial role in addressing key barriers to education in Afghanistan through localized, gender-sensitive strategies like female teachers and financial incentives. The community-based approach fosters local ownership and has a transformative impact. An Education Center would expand access to much-needed educational opportunities, especially for women and girls. It can significantly benefit the entire region with adequate funding and community support. This proposal provides a framework for establishing a successful, sustainable education program.
The Need
Afghanistan has very low literacy rates. An education center providing classes and necessary resources for poor and disadvantaged students of all ages could dramatically address this need. This proposal outlines a plan for establishing an education in each region of the country. The Education Center outlined below will be a model that can be replicated in provinces across the country.
The four decades of war have had a particularly devastating and costly effect on the southern part of the country. This is most evident in Kandahar, where the conflict took its heaviest toll. The literacy rate in Kandahar is estimated to be around 25% of the total population, and only 10% is for women. Fewer than 35% of school-aged children enrolled in school. Shortage of schools, learning materials, and qualified teachers, especially female teachers. Cultural norms and poverty restrict educational access for many girls. Furthermore, vocational training opportunities are limited for both girls and boys.
To increase access to quality education, especially for girls, through establishing community-based education centers across underserved areas of Afghanistan.
Project Description
The project will work with communities to establish education centers in homes, public buildings, or temporary facilities located within villages/settlements. The centers will provide:
Basic Education:
Primary instruction in core subjects like English, computers, mathematics, science, social studies, etc. The schedule will allow some flexibility to allow children to attend conveniently.
Accelerated Learning:
Special courses allow over-age students to catch up on missed years of education through condensed learning.
Female Teachers:
A key strategy will be recruiting and training female teachers/instructors from the local communities to encourage girls’ enrollment.
Conditional Cash Transfers
Small stipends for poor families are conditioned on sending children, especially girls, to education centers.
Facilities & Learning Materials:
Establish and provide basic facilities like classrooms, water/sanitation, instruction materials, stationery, etc.
Community Mobilization:
intensive efforts engaging communities, leaders, and families to generate support and change mindsets towards girls’ education.
Key Project Targets:
- Enroll 2,000 students in the centers
- Recruit and train female teachers from local communities
- Provide accelerated learning opportunities to over-age students
- Implement tuition assistance benefiting orphans and poor households
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Establishing one and then replicating six education centers across six provinces
