IRIN
AFGHANISTAN: UN helps to improve literacy
9 September 2004


[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

KABUL, 9 September (IRIN) - The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) 
and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation 
(UNESCO) are helping the Afghan Education Ministry to raise literacy 
levels in this war-torn country. A UNICEF survey in 2003 showed that the 
male literacy rate was 49 percent while female literacy was only 19.6 
percent.

"The literacy rate is very low in Afghanistan and it is important to raise 
it if we want to develop the country." Prof Lutfullah Safi, education 
coordinator of UNESCO, told IRIN in the Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday.

He said that UNESCO and the Ministry of Education had established a 
project on literacy and non-formal education development, known as Land 
Afghan, in January 2003.

Many years of war and the displacement of thousands of Afghans have caused 
their children to remain illiterate. With the country moving towards 
reconstruction and rehabilitation, it needs more assistance in order to 
increase the number of educated people who can take an active role in 
rebuilding their homeland.

"I was nine years old when the conflict started and then we all went to 
Pakistan where I was just working to bring bread for my family." 
Jamaludin, a 23-year-old new returnee told IRIN. "But still I like to 
study and I want to learn something in order to be known as an educated 
person in society."

The UNESCO official said the main activities of Land Afghan included the 
development of a curriculum in both Dari and Pashto for basic literacy and 
a post-literacy teachers' guide; providing literacy-related capacity 
building training to government agencies and NGOs; and establishing 
community learning centres where literacy and non-formal education courses 
were offered. Land Afghan was also aiming to develop resources for 
visually impaired and deaf Afghans.

Afghanistan now has more than four million children attending school. This 
is the largest ever number of students in school. Nationally, girls make 
up on average 30 percent of the student population. This is a massive 
increase, even when compared to the years before the Taliban restrictions 
on girls' education. However, a lack of accommodation and other 
educational resources remains a big problem.

According to a UNICEF report this year, the organisation has funded the 
rebuilding of 154 schools. The construction work was done by the United 
Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). In addition, UNICEF, in 
collaboration with the Ministry of Education, has supported the production 
of learning and teaching materials to four million children and 80,000 
teachers nationwide as well as distributing 10 million textbooks for 
grades 2-12.

UNICEF aims to continue efforts to increase opportunities for girls' 
education in Afghanistan, while paying increased attention to the quality 
of education through support for teacher training, curriculum development 
and physical improvements to schools and other learning environments, the 
report added.


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Copyright (c) UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2004


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