Blog: Afghanistan

Garden of Peace & Hope, Afghanistan

Women’s Empowerment Centers, Afghanistan

Garden of Peace & Hope, Afghanistan

Women’s Empowerment Centers, Afghanistan

Continuing our English language classes for the girls and boys, January was a busy month for our Women’s Empowerment Centers (WEC). We are also teaching literacy and health lessons for the women in Bamyan at our centers.

Earlier this week, we showed you some statistics that illustrated the disparity in opportunity between women and men around the world. It can be overwhelming sometimes to address a big, global issue like this, but there's good news:

You can start making a difference right here, right now!

It's no secret that there is a global disparity between opportunities for women and men. Women in developing nations, or in areas of extreme poverty, are particularly vulnerable to the gender gap. 

This Friday is International Women's Day, and the theme this year is "Balance for Better." The statistics below illustrate the imbalance we see in some countries today. But at GHNI, we're hopeful that someday soon, we'll see a balance for women and men in opportunity, education, income, and security. 

This Friday, March 8, is recognized as International Women’s Day. International Women’s Day was first recognized by the United Nations in 1975, and it has been celebrated annually ever since.

Internationalwomensday.com describes the goal of this day as “celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity.”

Recently, I visited our poplar tree project in Yakawlang. The trees are still growing taller, but they currently lack leaves.

Our exhibitions are excellent and going well in the Garden of Peace and Hope. In recent months, I had good exhibitions that included paintings, theater, handicrafts, and a fashion show with models. One event had to be postponed a week, but it was a wonderful exhibition with so many visitors that it was extended two more days so that all the villagers could visit. The next exhibition was in mid-December. On this day, all the paintings on public display were works by a very young girl who has waited for a long time to be showcased in the Garden of Peace and Hope.

Our Women’s Empowerment Centers (WEC) are run very well by our GHNI staff. The girl and boy students continue to regularly come to learn English. Now that the girls and boys are in the class together, they are enthusiastically attending in two class times. Those who are good in English come in first, and then others who are weaker come to the second class.