In 2002, a small GHNI team brought relief supplies to returning refugees in Afghanistan. Today GHNI in Afghanistan is multi-faceted, impacting thousands of Afghans from poor mountain farmers to widows to university professors and government leaders.
Agriculture: Our “Hope Center for Agriculture and Nutrition Development” (HCAND) in Kabul is one of GHNI’s most celebrated programs. More than 250 men and women have graduated from the HCAND program. Farmers are seeing higher crop yield and are growing alternative crops instead of poppy production, creating new and effective farming techniques, and providing nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables to their families and local markets. Nationally recognized, HCAND is endorsed by the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, which certifies each of our graduates as official agricultural trainers.
Health and Nutrition: Women at HCAND are trained in nutrition and Birth Life Saving Skills (BLiSS). Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, where one in seven women dies during pregnancy or labor. So BLiSS has trained women from villages across the country in nutrition and Birth Life Saving Skills. To date, all the women who have successfully completed this training are doing well with healthy deliveries.
Micro-enterprise: GHNI’s micro-enterprise program empowers widows and marginalized men and women to start self-sustainable business endeavors that both generate income for them and stimulate the community economy. Since 2002, GHNI’s micro-enterprise center has distributed blankets to thousands of Afghan families. In 2005, we began teaching widows how to make jellies and jams to sell. The raw ingredients are bought in the local marketplaces, then their finished jams are sold all around the area. We have now trained over 100 widows in the production of blankets, jams, and jellies!
English as a Second Language (ESL): Since 2003, GHNI has taught ESL to hundreds of Afghans in venues including government agencies, Kabul University, the Kabul National Museum of Art, Polytechnikum University, Jungelak Technikum High School, and multiple villages. In October 2007, GHNI’s office in Kabul opened “My Friend’s Place”–a new learning center where English classes are taught on a weekly basis. Learning English is a source of hope for many Afghan men and women, as it increases their economic opportunities and empowers them to further their education.
Solar Cooking: Due to a growing fuel crisis which affects the poor most of all, GHNI has introduced solar cooking. We’ve distributed more than 400 small portable solar cookers to Afghan families in remote regions at a heavily subsidized price. Over the next three years, GHNI plans to set up five workshops to produce 5,040 cement solar cookers for sale at affordable costs. This will create jobs and protect natural resources while providing free cooking fuel to the poor.
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