Land Area: 652090 (Sq./km)
Capital: Kabul
Official Language: Pashto and Persian (Dari)
Refugees: 2.1 million (UNHCR, 2006)
Literacy: 28.1% (UNDP, 2006)
Under 5 Mortality Rate (per 1000 live births): 257 (UNICEF, 2007)
AfghanistanSituation OverviewA history of civil war and regional conflict has left Afghanistan struggling to rebuild civil society and infrastructure and severely mine-affected. Achieving human security is critical. The majority of people, particularly women, are not having their basic rights met. Providing social infrastructure, building governance structures from the community level upwards and working with the most excluded are all important in achieving sustainable solutions to the continuing crisis of instability. Landmines have killed more than 400,000 people and maimed around 800,000 people across the country in the last 10 years. The current landmine situation in Afghanistan remains critical, with an estimated 6 to 7 million landmines still active. Ongoing conflict in Afghanistan has caused a huge refugee crisis. According to UNHCR 2.1 million Afghan refugees were reported in 72 asylum countries, making Afghanistan the largest country of origin of refugees. There are 912,000 internally displaced people in the country. Afghanistan is currently facing a hunger crisis due to expanding drought conditions. The hunger crisis will affect up to an estimated 2.5 million people, in addition to the 6.5 million people who are already seasonally or chronically food insecure.
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Our Current Work in AfghanistanAustcare is working with Afghan Amputees Bicyclists for Rehabilitation and Recreation (AABRAR), a local NGO based in Kabul that works with disabled people towards their physical rehabilitation and socio-economic integration. The purpose of the project, scheduled until December 2007, is to provide vocational training to people with disabilities in Kabul and to increase the income generating capacity of mine survivors by the end of 2007. We aim to provide education and vocational training to people with disabilities, many of whom are landmine victims. Additionally, the program will help to provide job placement to people with disabilities, and micro-credit support for those starting their own business. Highlights- Community awareness strategy developed and implemented on public awareness raising of the needs of people with disabilities in Kabul. - Basic education and life skills training program completed successfully for 75 people (37 women/38 men) with disabilities. The student retention rate was 100%. 92% of students passed their final exams and graduated. - Microcredit support and training provided to 40 people with disabilities to help them start their own business. Job placement of 50 people with disabilities has commenced. - Over 300 displaced families were able to resettle and farm after clearance of mines and unexploded ordnance from 25,455m2 of land in nine different villages in an Austcare mine action program that concluded in 2003. - Container delivered to Herat University in 2004 with: over 5,000 books and journals, one purchased second-hand photocopier, two donated photocopiers, and laboratory equipment donated by St Vincent’s Hospital; thirteen donated computers with seven of them upgraded, three filing cabinets and various office accessories from AC Nielsen, and; a donated whiteboard and retractable AV screen. |
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