REBUILDING THE EDUCATION SYSTEM
August 2003

After years of war and neglect, the country of Afghanistan is attempting to rebuild its critically damaged educational system.

Online NewsHour Special Report: Rebuilding Afghanistan Aug. 2003: The Security Situation The Educational System The Flourishing Drug Trade The Government The Humanitarian Situation The Life of Women Building a Free Press Aug. 5, 2003: Continuing attempts to bring stability to Afghanistan. April 16, 2003: Finance minister Ashraf Ghani discusses the lessons learned. Jan. 14, 2003: An Afghan finance official on Kabul's efforts to create a new currency.   Afghanistan Rebuilds its Education System 08.06.03 My Story: Afghanistan as I Saw it. Rebuilding Afghanistan: After two decades of war, the country begins to rebuild. 09.11.02     International Red Cross Humanitarian Relief in Afghanistan Afghanistan Relief Organization Afghanistan Relief International CARE: Rebuilding Afghanistan Islamic Relief Afghanistan Humanitarian Emergency Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan

The once robust and well-respected education system in Afghanistan has fallen into a state of neglect. War has destroyed more than 70 percent of the schools, and teachers and necessities such as textbooks and notebooks are in short supply. Urgent needs Under the repressive regime of the Taliban, girls were not allowed in the schools and boys' education focused mostly on religious studies. The Taliban banned women from working outside the home -- a major blow to a country where most teachers had been women before the hard-line government came into power. The restrictions resulted in an education system in a state of total disarray when the Taliban government collapsed in late 2001. UNICEF, the United Nations organization charged with protecting the rights of children, reports that more than 85 percent of the population has never been to school and that many will never receive a proper education. According to Afghanistan's minister of Education, the task of rebuilding is urgent and overwhelming. "Demand for education is exploding -- at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. We cannot risk disappointing or leaving these children of the war generation out of the system. They're already vulnerable and traumatized," said Mohammad Younus Qanooni, the minister of Education of the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan. "Yet from their ranks will come tomorrow's leaders," he added. Education since the fall of the Taliban Since Afghan forces, aided by a massive U.S. bombing campaign, drove the Taliban from power, an estimated three million children have enrolled in some form of education, mostly at the primary level. The effort to educate a huge number of girls denied access to school has also made headway. On average, girls make up 30 percent of school-attending children, but in the stricter southern and eastern parts of the country the number of girls attending school is far lower and remains at rates considered unacceptable to the Ministry of Education. Although the efforts since December 2001 have yielded some results, the educational efforts still face logistical and personnel challenges. According to Afghan education authorities, more than 1.5 million school-age children will not be able to attend classes this year because there are not enough schools or teachers. The schools that do exist often lack electricity, proper sanitation, or drinking water. Many utilize outdoor classrooms that are only available as long as the weather remains warm and close in the winter. Safety issues also remain, with the land surrounding many schools still laced with landmines and unexploded ordnance. Even when schools are rebuilt and staffed, standard supplies are rare. In the capital of Kabul, schools have few of the items considered commonplace in American schools. "We don't have pencils, we don't have notebooks and we sit on the floor," Abdul Samad, a student in Kabul, told Radio Free Europe. Efforts to rebuild the education system To solve these problems the Ministry of Education is working with international organizations like the United Nations, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and private non-governmental organizations, such as Help the Afghan Children. Together, the groups are trying to build or renovate schools, provide books and other supplies and dramatically increase the number of qualified teachers, especially women, through training programs. The aim is to provide education for all school-age children and reclaim the "lost generation" of students who were denied education during the war and Taliban rule. "Education is the bedrock of any society. In Afghanistan, the education of girls and women is one of the single most imperative investments the country can make," said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy. The government and groups are also working to make teaching a more appealing profession. Although generally a well-respected profession, teaching remains a low-paying one. "A senior teacher gets about 1,800 to 2,000 Afghanis a month, which is far below all standards. For this money, you cannot even buy enough food," Wahid Hadafmand, a teacher in Kabul, told Radio Free Europe. "I am not exaggerating. Many teachers, especially in Kabul and other cities, don't have a place to live. They cannot afford to rent a property." The government is attempting to solve this problem by giving teachers special incentives such as reduced priced food and free medical services in state-run institutions. --By Annie Schleicher, Online NewsHour