Help Afghan Boys Trade Guns for Books

AIL’s goal is to educate the people of Afghanistan so they can have greater opportunity and better lives. While the conditions in Afghanistan are still challenging, AIL is seeing positive changes in the lives of those Afghans that it works with.  AIL’s primary mission is to educate women and children, but never turns away any Afghan seeking help.

In the first two months of the year, AIL has helped to educate 4,706 young men and boys in classes ranging from preschool to literacy, English, computers to traditional Afghan arts such as calligraphy and miniature painting. 

Here is a story that shows how the centers are a community resource: “At the beginning of the month, the vaccination campaign began in the whole city area. The AIL Learning Center hosted vaccinators from the department of public health. People brought their children to the center and they were vaccinated. This action meant a large number of children was saved from dangerous diseases. The center likes to help the community and this sort of event means people become aware of the center and what it does. They see we have classes for girls but also for boys who need help.”

News

Dr. Yacoobi joined with high level national and international delegates in the "Seville Commitment" - Supporting Localization Efforts for #SDGs.  She said, “AIL has provided SDG services to the most marginalized and disadvantaged for 25 yrs. In my talk I emphasized it is essential to work with local governments and provide resources to local NGOs who are doing good work. Replicate excellent SDG focused programs so No One is Left Behind!”

AIL is working towards

SDG Goal 4 – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

At the start of this new year we reflect on what has been achieved in 2018 and how this has changed lives for the better. AIL’s Learning Centers (LCs) give people the opportunity to learn, to network with others and to gain both knowledge and increase their capacity.

In 2018, 28,121 students (9,026 male) attended courses at 48 LCs. The courses offered at centers vary according to need. Literacy and sewing are popular, also English, computers, math, weaving. There are some centers that are specialist such as 3 that are preschool only and 1 that is boys computing, 2 that offer computers/English combination classes only. There are 32 centers in the Herat area (16 rural) and 13 in Kabul.

Computing remains an in demand course at many centers. In 2018, 1,651 students attended some sort of computer class. Herat area centers had 485 male computer students.  Kabul’s boys only computer center had 118 students in the year a big increase from previous years. Two sites offered a combined computers and English 6 month course.

Parviz  said, “I am living in a place far from the center of the city . If a student want to learn computers or English he or she must travel a long way and that is a big problem for me and other like me. When I learned there is a center which teaches English and computers without charging fees I was very happy. I have been studying here for two months. In this short time I have learned a lot about computers and computer programs. I am very interested in computers.”

Thank you for your continued interest and we hope you will read the annual newsletter attached.

• newsletter_2018.final.pdf (PDF)