Donors provide financial and technical assistance with the help of our NGO directly to schools. As an Afghan, I have been contemplating; what would be one thing I could do to change this cycle of war, poverty, and destruction. What would be that “ONE THING” that could touch many lives and alter the fate of Afghans for the coming decades? The Afghanistan tragedy is not a unique one, countries have
experienced prolonged wars and they have arisen, and we read about their success storis in the history books today. Therefore, hopelessness and skepticism are not an option; because we can’t abandon 30 Million human beings and give up. This is the latest statistics from the Ministry of Education website that sounds shocking after billions of dollars of aid spent in Afghanistan. 12 Million Kids don’t have access to education due to security risks, 6 thousand schools are without a building, and hundreds of schools are un-accessible to some school-age kids, and only 27% percent of teachers have a bachelor’s degree which is the minimum required to be an educator. It indicates there is so much needs to be done in this sector. I’m wondering what would happen to those 12 million kids who will grow up with no education or skills? How as a country we will deal with these enormous challenges! These are hard questions and no easy answers. Are we going to be fighting another 4 decades of war under a different banner, and how we are going to survive and compete as a nation in the 4th industrial revolution era? We Afghans have built a tendency to look towards others for the solutions to all our problems, and history tells us that it has always turned out to be a disappointment. The government has so many challenges, and with rampant corruption, it will take many years till we‘ll see a tangible impact on the ground that would improve the education system and access to knowledge. The one sector that WE the people can contribute, that will certainly have a positive outcome and will surely change our destiny and the course of history; is education. What would happen if every well-off Afghan “adopts” a small rural school for 5 years, and provides some monetary and non-monetary assistance to His/Her/Their adopted school? I think it will be a unique initiative and could contribute greatly to literacy and education in rural parts of the country that have been historically neglected and have lagged behind in economic, and social development. This investment will change many lives, improve literacy in rural parts of Afghanistan, and provide skilled, educated, and informed citizens who would know their rights, privileges, and responsibilities and get equipped with the knowledge to earn a living and can’t be persuaded, or deluded to pick up arms and continue this brutal war. Implementation process:
Individual (s) willing to “adopt” shall bestow a minimum of $1,000.00 in an initial donation and be willing to provide monetary and non-monetary assistance for 5 additional years on a “voluntary” basis. The Initial donation shall be spent on projects that the students and school staff deem necessary and the ‘students’ shall participate and collaborate in the project development and implementation. You may use crowd-funding or a pool where more than one individual can pitch in to generate requisite funds. This project is tailored toward the Afghan diaspora, but not limited to, anyone keen and willing may join in. The theme of this project is to identify and solve basic challenges (micro-projects) that Afghan students face in their schools on daily basis in less privileged and rural parts of Afghanistan which government and other agencies may not be eager to mend, such as providing clean drinking water, building bathrooms, renovation; buying tents, carpets, chairs, solar panels, building small libraries, establishing a lab, providing computers, and the internet, etc. We will work with a national television channel to make a short reality show or documentary about the whole process, so we can appeal and attract more “donors” to join this movement and the “Goal” is to make this a national and international project with hundreds of donors and schools adopted
We will sign a memorandum of understanding between all parties, The MoE, The TV channel, and the Project Manager. The MoE will honor each donor with a plaque and the tv channel will produce good quality reality shows/documentaries. Though, this not an original idea, but I’m optimistic that this project would revolutionize education and literacy in Afghanistan. Hopefully, donors with money and expertise will adopt schools and provide insight, and technical assistance on how to improve different aspects of education. Afghans are inherently generous and love their country, and they have always shown interest to contribute to the betterment of their homeland. I personally know many Afghans abroad, and in Afghanistan, who are willing to contribute. Implementation:
The TV channel will scout for an eligible school, produce a short documentary about the school, general info about the area and its demography, importance, terrain, people and history, etc. Interviews with a few pupils to get their view on the basic challenges they face; how they would spend $1000.00; create an inspiring, emotional script that depicts a personal story of a student that has a unique story to tell about his life, challenges, daily struggles that people can relate to. Personal stories are more likely to have a transformative impact on the listeners if they come with a catalyst that involves struggle. And then a subsequent documentary that will show how the money was spent, the process of building, repairing, transforming. Interview with the donors if feasible. Ask basic questions on how else he/she can contribute more, and how he/she feels about this project and what motivated him/her to donate, etc. Whether he/she knows or will encourage and persuade other potential donors to join this noble cause. And the donor will be honored with an official plaque from the Ministry of Education. We will leave other details of this production to professional journalists, editors, and producers. I (Hamid Atrafi) will make the 1st donation and will find at least 3 more donors once the contract is signed with the TV channel willing to produce the show, and we have a feasible plan. If the initial programs are successful and the results are satisfactory to all parties involved, we will move to the next phase. In the next phase, schools and students willing to be adopted will make a short documentary with their smartphones and describe their issues, challenges, and needs, and send it to the TV channel; and donors willing to adopt the school be selected from the list already established. The eligibility will be prioritized and determined based on urgency, necessity, and feasibility, etc. The work contracts shall be given to a local builder/contractor, and it shall hire only locals and shall involve students, teachers in the process. All decisions shall be taken in consensus with village elders, teachers, and students. The involvement of the students, elders, and other civil societies will ensure that the money is not embezzled and will ensure transparency and accountability.
