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Snapshot
Fourteen women
awarded scholarships to
study English, IT and
bookkeeping in neighbor
to the northeast
Afghan Women Pursue Studies across the Border
Photo: Khursand Saidhusainov, UCA
These 14 women are among the 60
Afghans furthering their educations in
neighbor Tajikistan.
“
It is so interesting, I
want to
continue studying and
learning about networking
and computer programming,”
says Palwasha, 19.
With the help of USAID, Afghans are now able to access higher
education opportunities in Tajikistan, its neighbor to the northeast.
The joint initiative between the University of Central Asia
and USAID fosters cross-border cooperation and employment
opportunities between the two countries.
On May 14, the program awarded 60 scholarships to Afghans
to pursue courses in English, IT, and bookkeeping at UCA’s
School of Professional and Continuing Education in Khorog.
Fourteen of these scholarship recipients are women between
19 and 25 years old from different parts of Afghanistan.
Negina, 24, is one of seven women studying English through
the program. Before arriving in Tajikistan, she worked at the
French Medical Institute for Children in Kabul. Her father
learned about the project scholarship and encouraged her to
apply. Though she gave up a stable income, she has no regrets
about her decision.
“I wanted to learn English at a professional level. The teachers
here are qualified and I would like to stay and pursue more
courses,” she said. Negina first learned English in Pakistan but
was not able to improve her skills when she returned home.
She enrolled in classes in Kabul, but the school did not have
any materials. “Here we use tape recorders to practice pronunciation.
When I first arrived, no one understood what I said, but
through this method, I’ve improved my pronunciation.”
Marina, 25, from Faizabad, is a mother of three. She is accompanied
by her youngest child, a four-year-old boy, who attends
kindergarten while Marina studies. He speaks a local language
and can communicate easily with the other children. Marina
hopes to continue her studies and one day to be a teacher.
“One of the most important things I’ve learned is grammar. In
Faizabad you learn English but you do not study grammar.”
Through the program, these women have gained new skills
they can take with them to improve their lives and build stronger
communities back home in Afghanistan.
Improving the quality of education for Afghans is one of
USAID’s priorities in the war-torn country. Since 2006, the
Agency has implemented several higher education projects that
are necessary to support sustainable development
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