A word from the President
Dear friends, donors, partners and colleagues,
I hope you are doing well, and I send you warm greetings from Kabul.
Updating you on our activities is always a special moment for me. You are in my mind every day, while the team and I work hard to ensure continued support to some of the most fragile and vulnerable communities in the central regions of Afghanistan.
I have just returned from Bamyan, where we are running 50 preschool projects and a new school construction. They are progressing well. At the end of such a trip, there are many things to share with you and I wish to start with the story of a young 6-year old girl, Sitayish. Her story is both heart-breaking and filled with hope, thanks to the preschool project of Nai Qala.
Sitayish is one of the 3000 children benefiting from our preschool program. When I visited her class recently, she passionately insisted on showing how well she had learned her numbers. She did so very well and told me she was keen to learn more and more.
At the same time, her parents are under deep economic pressure and need all their children to help out as bread winners to support the family’s livelihood. Sitayish and her sister take turns shepherding the animals and therefore also take turns going to their respective classes. In other words, they each go to school every second day. So, I was both inspired that Nai Qala is helping to provide access to education and bringing a change of culture, while also recognizing how much work remains to be done to overcome the poverty and suffering of these families.
As you know, Nai Qala simply never gives up. We have also just recently inaugurated our school in the village of Dou Aab, district of Yakawlang, province of Bamyan.
The children used to study out in the open exposed to the unforgiving weather conditions, be it rain or snow, dust or heat. So, the community and children could not believe that a school was indeed built for them and they could now study in dignified conditions.
The village faces extreme poverty and this inauguration was a moment of special celebration. Every one of the girls wanted to give a speech or recite a poem and it was a big challenge to choose just 10 among 100s of girls. This was a powerful illustration that in spite of the political challenges and economic hardship, people are desperate for education as a symbol of hope for a different future. I am proud to stand by them.
This is indeed our goal: to give them hope. I am grateful to you all for believing in our work and efforts. Please enjoy the self-explanatory photographs that illustrate why your support matters and matters so greatly.
With my most sincere regards,
Taiba Rahim,
President of the Nai Qala Association
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