The Cost

It costs just £4 a week (£16 a month) to educate a child in our new schools. For the price of a coffee and a snack you can help change lives.

The Crisis

Afghanistan has one of lowest literacy rates in the world, and the scale of the problem is immense.

Only 17% of women can read and write.

3.5 million children are not in education.

85% of these are girls.

In traditional households, women are expected to manage the home and not attend schools; and for those few that do attend, the constant threat of the Taliban can make getting an education even harder. With Afghanistans increasing instability, the number of children in full time education continues to decline.

41% of schools in Afghanistan do not have buildings, and even where there are schools many children live too far away to be able to attend.

Government and private sector support is focused in a few select areas, while some provinces in the centre and north of the country are starved of resources. Without investment, education becomes a distant dream for many.

We plan to change this.

The Plan

Here at ACAA we are very concerned about womens and childrens education in Afghanistan, especially in rural and remote areas where war, economic crisis, and the prevalence of harmful traditions have had an adverse effect on access to education.

We have solid partnerships on the ground, and have already worked with Baghalan University, local schools, and provincial councils to change thousands of lives, but we need to do more.

With your help we will build education centres in the Baghlan and Samangan provinces, two areas where women and children are most deprived of education.

With these in place, we will:

Conduct lessons in all standard school subjects, to provide a true education.

Teach English and other language classes, to widen their prospects.

Help women and girls access safe centres, so that they can receive an education without fear.

The unemployment rate in Afghanistan is very high, and absolute poverty is increasing. Education is the best route out of poverty, and we hope to contribute towards alleviating this issue in some way.

Who We Are

The Afghanistan & Central Asian Association (ACAA) was founded in 2000 to support and promote social and economic integration of refugees, new arrivals and the wider community of Afghan and Central Asian heritage. Issues faced by our communities include lack of access to appropriate ESOL, domestic violence, mental and physical health problems, a lack of access to health information, and a lack of information about rights and local systems. We have a strong track record of delivering successful projects aimed at promoting the integration and employability of marginalised and vulnerable people.

Our work also extends to Afghanistan itself and we previously managed two citizen advice centres in Kabul and Pul-e-Khumri, providing free impartial legal and other advice, awareness raising and education. The project exceeded its targets (scored with an A++ by UKAID): Over 2000 individuals (65% women) received legal and rights advice; 1948 people had direct access to basic health services and checks and were referred on where necessary; and a further 3000 people attended outreach workshops.

We have recently started to work in Afghanistan to improve human rights and access to justice womens issues in particular, quality of life for some of the poorest districts in Kabul and Pul-e-Khumri, and to improve health communication. We help to facilitate infrastructure projects such as building clean water and healthcare facilities, particularly in Pul-e-Khumri, the home of our founder, Dr. Nooralhaq Nasimi.

We have solid partnerships on the ground with local civil society organisations, local residents, local authorities, provincial councils, local MPs, Baghlan University, local schools, NGOs and the local media. As an organisation we have changed the lives of thousands of isolated and disadvantaged community members. Our work is with societys most vulnerable but inspiring people and we are asking for your help to continue this legacy.

Please, help us to help us support some of the most vulnerable people in Afghanistan.