More Afghan women arrive in Kazakhstan as part of EU-funded educational project

A second group of ten Afghan women, recipients of the scholarships funded by the European Union, arrived in Kazakhstan to pursue education, the press-service of regional point of OSCE said on December 9.

The students will begin their academic journey with online English language classes at Almaty Management University (AlmaU) Language School. After its successful completion, they will enroll at one of the top universities in Kazakhstan – Kazakh-British Technical University, to study mining.

“The project runs under a €2 million grant provided by the EU to support Afghan women in their strive for higher education. In total, 50 Afghan women will obtain higher, technical, and vocational education at various universities across Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan by 2025,” the OSCE said. “Empowering women via education creates vast personal as well as economic impact, such as it generates opportunities to realise one’s potential and ability to contribute to their communities upon returning to Afghanistan,” it added.

“Women are central to economic growth and sustainable development and their economic empowerment is crucial to the progress of any country. According to the new EU Strategy for Central Asia, it is in the joint interest of the EU and of Central Asian states to intensify cooperation to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan. In other words, without a peaceful Afghanistan, there will be no prosperous Central Asia. Connecting Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan by an ‘educational bridge’ strengthen the social and economic linkages among them, thus contributing to address security challenges, and helping ensure a more peaceful and prosperous future for the region, the press service said, quoting EU Ambassador to Kazakhstan Sven-Olov Carlsson.

The first group of 30 Afghan women arrived in Almaty in October 2019. They have successfully completed language training and enrolled into Bachelor, Master and Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) programmes to study agriculture, finance and mining at Satbayev University, Kazakh-British Technical University and Kazakh National Agrarian University. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the students are currently taking academic courses online.

Afghan women face disproportionate barriers to enter education and employment compared to their male counterparts. According to the 2019 UNDP Human Development Report, only 13 percent of all adult Afghan women have completed a secondary education, while 37 percent adult men have. Poverty, security issues, gender stereotypes and social norms are among the main causes for the limited access to education among Afghan women.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kazakhstan is an implementing partner of the initiative. Yakup Beris, UNDP Resident Representative in Kazakhstan, said,  “UNDP in Kazakhstan is very proud to be part of this important joint initiative. We strongly believe that the development of any society is impossible without the full and active participation of women. Empowering women through removing existing barriers and inequalities is vital for them to stand on equal footing with men and to be able to contribute to their communities and economies”.

This summer the project was officially launched in Uzbekistan. Ten Afghan women became scholarship recipients to study Agriculture at The Educational Center for Training Afghan Citizens in Termez (ECTAT). Thus, all 50 women have been already selected and are currently at various stages of education in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Fighting gender-based violence in Central Asia and Afghanistan

Meanwhile, in the framework of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, the Spotlight Initiative Regional Programme for Central Asia and Afghanistan was officially launched with participation of UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen and high-level government representatives from Central Asian countries and Afghanistan, the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office in Kazakhstan said in a press release.

“Funded with an initial approved budget of $4.3 million, this regional programme is part of a global initiative funded by the European Union in over 25 countries and regions addressing different forms of violence against women as well as harmful practices,” the press release read.

In Central Asia and Afghanistan, the programme is focused on strengthening efforts to end sexual and gender based-violence against women and girls and by symbolically shining a spotlight on barriers that hinder them from development.

“Since the outbreak of COVID-19 gender-based and domestic violence has increased globally, and the countries in Central Asia and Afghanistan are no exception,” Mohammed said.

The ultimate goal of the Spotlight Programme is to create an environment where there is zero tolerance for sexual and gender-based violence and harmful practices, which the national stakeholders and an estimated 35 million women and girls in the five Central Asian countries and Afghanistan will contribute to and benefit from.

Working in partnership with key institutions and diverse partners, the Spotlight Initiative will focus on developing good practices as well as forging alliances in the region around areas such as legislative reform, institutional strengthening, tackling social norms and attitudes, strengthening civil society and women’s movements. The measures will also include digital literacy training and engaging key stakeholders to contribute to respecting and protecting women’s and girls’ rights. The Initiative is coordinated by the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office in Kazakhstan and is implemented through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and UN Women.

“The Spotlight Initiative will provide an important platform for the United Nations to support the countries as they tackle the pandemic of violence, one that threatens individual health and integrity, families, communities, and the global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in this region”, — In her address to partners and invited guests, the UN Resident Coordinator Designate for Kazakhstan, Michaela Friberg-Storey said.

During the event participants spoke about their work and the challenges when addressing violence against women and girls. There was a collective agreement that all stakeholders, from the UN, EU, government, chiefs, women, men, girls and boys, need to be involved, and behaviours and mindsets need to be changed to combat any form of violence.